


Reunion

by leel0793



Series: The Hogwarts Librarian [3]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Awkwardness, Confusion, F/M, Fights, Flirting, Fluff, Hogwarts Library, Hufflepuff, Librarians, Love Triangles, Number Twelve Grimmauld Place, Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter), Reader-Insert, Trauma
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-21
Updated: 2020-11-29
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:34:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 35,604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26574580
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/leel0793/pseuds/leel0793
Summary: The last two years Y/n spent as Hogwarts Librarian weren't as smooth sailing as she had thought they would be. As a result of the events from the Tri-Wizard Tournament, Voldemort has returned and she's suffered a great loss because of it.On top of all of that, she's now a member of the Order of the Phoenix, which means spending a lot of time with a certain ex boyfriend...*This story follows the same timeline as The Order of the Phoenix. However you get to experience the story in a new characters perspective.*
Relationships: Charlie Weasley/Original Female Character(s), Charlie Weasley/Reader, Remus Lupin/Original Female Character(s), Remus Lupin/Reader
Series: The Hogwarts Librarian [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1783039
Comments: 44
Kudos: 148





	1. Well, this is awkward

**Author's Note:**

> Hello lovely readers!
> 
> Before you start, this is part 3 of the Hogwarts Librarian series, so if you haven't already, please check out parts 1 and 2. You can find them in the link below.
> 
> https://archiveofourown.org/series/1783039
> 
> Your thoughts and opinions matter to me, so don't be shy if you want to interact. I love hearing your feedback.
> 
> Big love! xx

It had been two weeks since Y/n first visited number 12 Grimmauld Place. She still remembered the curiosity of wondering why Albus had given her a piece of parchment with an address on it. Y/n knew that it would have something to do with The Order of the Phoenix, but never in a million years had she expected the townhouse to belong to Sirius Black. 

Looking back at her first time seeing Remus since the break-up, she wished it had gone much smoother. If only she’d handled it cooler. Instead she stood awkwardly on the top step and stared in shock. Of course, Remus had done the same, so she felt a little solace in knowing he had been just as uncomfortable.

Sirius had relished every moment of his friends discomfort however. Cheeky shit that he was. He looked between the two of them so rapidly, one would have thought he was watching a tennis match. He clearly hadn’t wanted to miss a thing.

When neither Y/n nor Remus made a move, Sirius eventually pulled her inside and closed the door quietly. “Shhh, you’ll wake up the old bat,” he whispered. “Honestly, I’m surprised your knocking didn’t do the trick.”

“Who are you talking about?” Y/n whispered back. 

“Come on, we’ll chat in the lounge,” Sirius suggested.

Remus followed Sirius and Y/n silently.

“I’ll fix us some tea,” Sirius offered. A huge grin planted on his face. Y/n knew exactly what he was doing and desperately wanted to protest. Remus also seemed to understand and shot up in an attempt to beat him too it.

“Sit back down Remus!” Sirius barked. “It’s my house and I am entertaining my guest.” Before Remus could object, Sirius had already darted out of the room, leaving the two alone. They could hear the sniggering coming from the kitchen.

“Child,” Y/n grumbled. She would have to pay him back one day.

Y/n glanced around the room, looking at everything other than her ex. She could occasionally feel his gaze burning a hole in her. She risked a peek and caught him staring. Both turned away, Y/n could feel the flush in her face.

‘Just say something Y/n!’ she pleaded. ‘Anything! Talk to him about the weather for goodness sake!’ But her brain couldn’t compute anything into words.

Finally, after an eternity, Remus spoke. “Sirius told me what happened at the end of last term. I’m so sorry.”

She’d almost forgotten how sweet and soothing his voice had been. “Thank you,” was all she managed.

Once again, silence fell over them and she regretted not saying more than two words. “Seems like the end of the school year isn’t my time.” She tried to make it sound like a joke, but he winced.

“Only because I always seem to get knocked out,” she added quickly, in an attempt to make sure he didn’t feel like she was taking a stab at him for breaking up with her.

“It appears that way,” he replied sadly. 

“How have you been?” She asked. 

“I’ve had good days…and bad. What about you? How are things going with Charlie?”

Never in a million years did she expect to have this conversation. Y/n looked at the door which Sirius had disappeared behind, longing for him to come back and change the subject. He didn’t.

“I’m good,” she lied. Truthfully she hadn’t been doing great since Cedrics death. “I may be visiting Charlie in Romania at some point over the summer break.”

At that point Sirius walked in holding a tray of tea. “Thank you Sirius, though you didn’t need to go to so much trouble.”

He scoffed, “Kreacher made it! Don’t worry, he didn’t slip any poison in. I watched him.”

“Who is Kreacher?”

“My family’s house elf.” He pulled a face as if Kreacher was the most disgusting thing on the planet. This confused Y/n as most house elf’s she had come across had been sweet and willing to do just about anything for their master.

“Sooo, enough talk of that horrible thing. What have you two been chatting about?” He glanced at Remus and wiggled his eyebrows, not aware that Y/n could see him in the reflection of a glass cabinet. She shook her head and stood.

“This is a great place,” Y/n gestured. “Could do with a cleaning though.” She really hoped that Sirius would drop the topic of her and Remus. She wasn’t ready to have that conversation just yet, let alone with Sirius as witness.

“Yes, well, Molly and the kids will be staying here at some point over the break, I’m sure she will be keen to help tidy.”

Y/n rolled her eyes, “you’re going to let Molly handle everything?”

“Why not?” Sirius shrugged. “Ron’s told me she’s always cooking and cleaning.”

“Her house!” Y/n sighed. “Anyway, I’m not getting into that at the moment…Albus gave me this address for a reason. I’m assuming it has something to do with the Order?”

“That’s correct,” Sirius nodded.

“Well, he’s asked me to join, so what can I do?”

Both men seemed a little taken aback by Y/n’s eagerness. “Well?”

“We need to get this place up and running,” Remus whispered. “People will be staying here soon and as you can see, there’s plenty of work to be done.”

Y/n nodded in agreement. The place was a mess. “Well, I’m on holidays, so I have time to spare. Point me in the direction of where you want me to start.”

Sirius clutched at his chest dramatically and sighed. “Beautiful, brave, clever and hardworking…why’d you ever let this one get away Moony?”

Both Y/n and Remus glanced quickly at one another, then blushed before looking away. Sirius of course, found the whole situation incredibly amusing and barked a laugh.

“Right, if you’re gonna keep saying shit like that, I’m out of here.” Y/n grabbed her bag and stormed out of the room.

“Wait!” Sirius called and began chasing after her. Remus followed.

“Bugger off Sirius! It’s hard enough doing this, let alone listening to you harp on about it!”

Suddenly the hallway was filled with a horrible shrieking sound. 

“Now you’ve done it!” Remus smacked his friend on the arm. 

“How is her waking up the banshee MY fault? She was the one yelling!”

“She wouldn’t have been yelling if you hadn’t made that comment!” Remus scolded.

“What? So I can’t have fun in my own house?” Sirius grumbled.

“No!” Both Remus and Y/n bellowed at the same time.

“FILTHY BLOOD TRAITORS! HALF BLOODS! DISGUSTING WEREWOLF! IN MY HOUSE?!”

“Okay, what is making that screaming sound?!”

Sirius grabbed Y/n by the arm and pulled her back into the living room. “That, is my mother…”

“If we’re quiet enough, she stays asleep,” Remus sighed. “Sorry, we should have explained when you asked earlier.”

Once back in the lounge, Sirius sidled beside Y/n and nudged her shoulder. “Sorry, I often take things too far,” he whispered. Y/n smiled at Sirius. The simple gesture told him that all was forgiven. The three sat on the couch and resumed sipping their hot drinks. This time, it was Y/n who spoke first.

“I really am sorry for waking you both up so early. I just wanted to avoid any questions from Hogwarts staff…I’m not sure who is a member.”

“There are a few,” Sirius offered.

“Albus didn’t say anything when he gave me the piece of paper with the address on it.”

“He didn’t mention anything to us either,” Remus began. “We had no idea who it would be when you knocked on the door.”

Y/n shook her head in defeat knowing that Albus would have done this on purpose. Better to get the awkwardness out of the way before anything really heavy happened. 

“Well, it’s a good thing you have the holidays to help us out,” Sirius smiled. “Lucky you!”

“Actually,” Remus interjected. “Y/n is going away soon.”

Sirius looked at her questioningly and she nodded. “I will be heading to Romania at some point…to visit Charlie.”

Sirius shot Remus a quick look and Y/n peaked at him also, from behind her mug. If Remus was uncomfortable he was hiding it well. 

After a little more chitchatting, Sirius showed Y/n to a few bedrooms that needed some work done. Having lived with Seraya for a few years, Y/n had a pretty decent understanding when it came to cleaning spells. Willard, Serayas husband and owner of Dervish and Banges, had also taught her some restoration spells for furniture. Before she knew it, the rooms were looking ready to be lived in. The only thing she really needed to tackle were the huge number of doxies that had taken residence. 

Some Doxycide had been supplied by Albus on one of his previous visits to the house, but there wasn’t much left. Y/n made a mental note to ask Severus for some more. After spraying a large number, she removed them and the eggs safely before disposing of them. 

By the time she had finished, Y/n had certainly worked up a sweat. Her cardigan had come off and she’d tied a knot in the front of her t-shirt to help cool herself. Y/n had packed a spare change of clothes in her bag in case her jeans became too warm.

Y/n closed the door to the room she had just finished spraying and locked it. She wasn’t taking any chances of being barged in on. Very quickly, she peeled the tight jeans from off of her legs and pulled up a pair of shorts. Her hair was now in a messy high bun and she was covered in dust.

When she walked down the stairs to where the boys were, Sirius let out a loud wolf whistle. Remus looked at his friend, completely mortified. Y/n shook her head and laughed it off. Sirius flirting was nothing new. Though it was the first time Remus had seen his best friend interact with his ex-partner in this way.

“Those two bedrooms are done,” Y/n smiled, choosing to ignore Sirius’s whistle. “Where next?”

“You could get a start on the attic? It’s going to be a big job,” Sirius explained.

“I’m on it!”

Y/n marched up the stairs all the way to the attic. It was even hotter in there. The windows hadn’t likely been opened in decades. With a flick of her wand, the windows opened with ease and she began working on some spells to tidy the area. Sirius was right, it was a huge space. Everywhere she looked there were doxies and eggs. The Doxycide had run out by the time she had sprayed one corner of the room, so Y/n resorted to the knockback jinx. Though it was taking much longer and she was starting to grow hungry.

Making her way back down the stairs, she met the men in the kitchen. They were also looking rather peckish. “I’m going to get some food,” Y/n said as she grabbed her bag. “Want anything?”

Remus and Sirius nodded their heads like two small children begging for a lolly. Y/n laughed. 

“I saw a bakery on my way here, how about a pie?”

“Sounds good!” “That would be great!”

Y/n headed towards the door and went to leave, when she felt a tug on her arm. She turned and faced Remus.

“Do you want a hand?” he asked.

Y/n shook her head, though she regretted it instantly. He looked hurt. Truth be told, she did want some alone time with Remus while Sirius wasn’t around. Remus went to turn back towards the kitchen when Y/n grabbed him.

“Actually, I was also planning on getting some groceries for you both as well. I might need an extra pair of hands.” She smiled warmly, which he returned. His smile reminded her of why she fell for him in the first place. It really did light up the room.

“We’ll be back soon!” Remus called as he began pulling the door shut behind them.

“Take all the time you need!” they heard their friend shout back in a playful tone. 

The short stroll to the shop was a pleasant one. The hot summer air was surprisingly welcoming on her bare legs and there was a slight cool breeze. They walked along side one another, occasionally grazing each other’s arms as they navigated past muggles on the sidewalk. Every time this happened her heart would involuntarily flutter with excitement. She willed herself to stop, but it couldn’t be controlled.

Remus walked beside Y/n silently, though she could tell that there were a few moments when he wanted to chat. Each time he stopped himself. Y/n decided to work up the courage and start the conversation.

“How long have you been living with Padfoot?” she asked, remembering that when Sirius had initially escaped Azkaban, the muggle press had also been notified. She didn’t want to take any chances, in case any muggles were listening.

“Not long actually,” Remus began. “I moved in a few weeks ago…after well, you know.”

Y/n winced when she remembered the events that had caused the Order to reassemble. Harry had almost been killed, Cedric had been murdered and Voldemort was back. A shiver ran down her spine. The loss of Cedric was still weighing on her. She couldn’t begin to imagine how hard Harry must be taking it. She knew it too well. He’d be blaming himself…and where he was living, they wouldn’t understand. He must be feeling so isolated.

Remus noticed Y/n’s discomfort and stopped under a tree. “Sirius told me you were close to the Diggory boy. I’m sorry for your loss.”

“Thank you,” Y/n replied sadly, looking at her feet. “Cedric was a new friend, but he was a great one. He had so much potential. He was so young.”

“It’s only going to get worse,” Remus whispered. They continued walking along the path which was mostly deserted now.

“I was too naïve during the first war to fully grasp what was happening. Plus living with my muggle mother whose sole focus was chasing after men didn’t help. The only stories I heard were from other Hogwarts children and that was after the fact.”

Remus stiffened ever so slightly. “I always forget how young you are.”

Y/n looked away and rolled her eyes. Not this again. He was so caught up on age. The way he spoke, it was like he was Albus Dumbledore’s age. She decided to change the subject.

“What’s it been like living with Sirius again? Is it just like you remember?” They had arrived at the little co-op now.

Remus laughed and grabbed a basket. “You know? I think he’s even messier than I remember. Though there hasn’t been a cycle of girls rolling through which is a nice change.”

Y/n and Remus walked down each aisle and began placing items in the basket that would be easy for two men to cook. Once they were satisfied with their haul, Y/n pulled out her muggle money and paid for the lot. Remus began to disagree and opened his wallet, but Y/n quickly elbowed him to put it away.

“Wrong currency,” she whispered. Remus blushed with embarrassment.

“Please let me pay you back with some of our money,” Remus pleaded as they left the store.

“Don’t be silly Remus!” Y/n scolded. “I have had this money in my account for years! It was about time I spent some. Now let’s go and buy these pies!”

Y/n could tell that Remus wanted to protest further, so she began hurrying down the street towards the bakery. She refused to hear any more of it. So far for the Order, she’d cleaned a few rooms. The least Y/n could do was feed two of its most important members.

With the pies and groceries in hand, Remus and Y/n made the short walk back to Grimmauld Place in no time. Sirius had tidied a spot for them in the lounge and they all settled down and munched away. Once again, Sirius was eyeing the two like a hawk. Y/n could tell by the glint in his eyes that he was desperate to tease once more, but decided to hold back given their previous agreement. Though she knew that agreement would be null and void the next time they met up.

“Right!” Y/n said as she dusted the pastry off her chest and placed the crumbs in the little bag the pie had come in. “I want to clean a little more in the attic, then I might just call it a day.”

Once again she climbed the stairs all the way up to the attic. Y/n disposed of the few doxies she had sprayed earlier and began working on cleaning a new corner. An old cabinet caught her eye and soon she was kneeling before it, picking up the contents that had spilled out of one side. Without a second thought, Y/n opened the doors fully and was soon taken aback by the presence of two looming figures.

Both were standing in the closet and were wearing masks like she had seen at the World Cup. Y/n fell from her knees onto her bottom and began edging away from them. This can’t be real, she insisted and yet, there they were. A tightness in her chest began to form and she began feeling a shortness in breath. She tried to scream for help, but nothing came out.

The two figures stepped out of the closet and began walking towards her. It wasn’t until they removed their masks that she truly felt the terror of the situation she was in. Peter Pettigrew and Barty Crouch Jnr stood before her, both wearing sinister grins.

Somehow she managed to scramble to her feet and run to the door, but it wouldn’t open. She opened her mouth once again, but nothing came out. Sirius and Remus would have no idea what was happening. How did they find me? She thought.

Her previous encounters with the two men began replaying in her mind. Both encounters had resulted in Y/n ending up unconscious and injured. Both men were responsible for Lord Voldemort’s return. As the two men neared her, Y/n began pounding against the door, hoping it would open. When it didn’t she began trying to focus. My wand!

Y/n patted her back pocket, but to her dismay it was empty. She glanced towards the cabinet and saw it laying on the floor. Peter and Barty were still staring at her menacingly and were now blocking the way. Shit, she thought.

Just as she was about to make a dash for her wand, the door behind her sprang open. Both Sirius and Remus stood in the doorway with eyes wide open. “Bloody Bogarts!” Sirius bellowed.

“Ridikkulus!” Remus cried, pointing his wand at the pair. 

In an instant the two figures were banished back into the cabinet and the door was locked. Both Sirius and Remus rushed towards Y/n and placed an arm on her shoulder. 

“My fear! It changed!” Y/n was completely dumbfounded. Her previous encounter with a Bogart had been in her first year as Hogwarts Librarian in the staff room. The entire room had turned into a slosh of blood. Remus had been the one to save her ass then too.

“It doesn’t surprise me that it’s changed from your childhood fear from a movie,” Remus cooed. “You’ve been through a lot of trauma since then.”

Y/n was surprised he remembered the story behind her fear of blood. The scene in The Shining seemed like nothing now. The two men who had just been standing before her were far more terrifying then a room filled with blood. Peter and Barty had killed people…in real life.

“I better go,” Y/n said, pulling herself out of Sirius and Remus’s hold. She began rushing down the stairs. Both men were in close pursuit.

“You need to rest!” Remus urged. “Have some chocolate.”

“I’ll be fine!”

“Remus is right, Y/n. You should stay the night.”

“I don’t have any spare clothes.”

“Hey, that’s not a problem,” Sirius teased. Y/n didn’t have to look to know that Remus had punched Sirius in the arm, his cry of pain was enough.

Remus approached Y/n and turned her to face him. “Please stay. Just for this evening.” His soft touch made her body tingle.

They locked eyes and her heart ached. She wanted nothing more than to leap into his arms and let him take care of her. 

“You’re on holidays,” Sirius added. “No one will question your whereabouts.”

“Okay,” Y/n finally agreed. “But you need to personally make sure I won’t be getting any more visits from Death Eaters. Real or Fake!”

Sirius dashed up the stairs, “I’m already on it!”


	2. Romania

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y/n feels guilty about spending time with Remus, especially when Charlie is still waiting on a response about Romania.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you can expect...this chapter gets a little...steamy?

It had been strange trying to get to sleep in Grimmauld Place, knowing that Remus was only in the room next to hers. For so long, Y/n had dreamt of being under the same roof as him again, but now she felt a pang of guilt. Charlie was still very much a part of her life and she cared deeply for him.

Another contributing factor to her lack of sleep was the resident House Elf, Kreacher. Often she heard him shuffling down the hall, mumbling to himself about blood traitors and half-bloods. Somewhere down the hall she could hear Sirius snoring.

Unable to sleep, Y/n got out of bed and made for her bag. Sirius had loaned her an old shirt of his to sleep in, and it barely covered her butt. She couldn’t be 100% certain if it was on purpose or not. Either way, there was no way in hell he would be seeing her in it.

Y/n rummaged through her bag as silently as she could and finally found what she was looking for. A piece of parchment and a pen. Her encounter with Remus, as innocent as it had been was playing on her mind and she felt a strong urge to let Charlie know that she was eager to take him up on his offer to visit.

\----------------------------------------  
My Dear Charlie,

I know I haven’t written in a while and I’m sorry. I’m sure by now that your family has updated you about what transpired on the evening of the final task. 

I am okay physically, but something happened earlier today that made me realise the events of that night have affected me more than I had imagined.

I’ll explain more in person…that is, if you are still keen on me visiting you in Romania?

Y/n xx  
\----------------------------------------

Very quietly, Y/n emerged from her room and made her way down the stairs. Earlier in the day she had seen a large owl in the kitchen. She was sure Sirius wouldn’t mind her borrowing it.

The house was dead quiet, except the occasional squeak of a loose floorboard as Y/n stepped on it. Though it was nothing over the sound of Sirius snoring. Y/n took extra care where she stood as she passed the sleeping portrait of Walburga Black. 

Finally she made it to the kitchen where the owl was nibbling on some food that one of the boys had left out. Y/n approached cautiously and whispered, letting her presence be known. When the owl turned it let out a quick hoot of excitement when it saw her letter.

“Shhh,” she hushed as she began tying the letter to the owl’s leg. The owl continued pecking at the food as Y/n opened the kitchen window. Luckily it opened silently. “Charlie Weasley - Romanian Dragon Sanctuary,” she whispered, giving the owl a scratch. In an instant it flew out of the window and soared in to the night sky.

Y/n closed the window and made to leave, only this time she ran into a figure on her way out of the kitchen. Just as she opened her mouth to squeal, she felt a hand clamp over her mouth.

“It’s just me,” she heard the familiar voice say. Y/n relaxed, it was Remus.

“What are you doing up?” she asked curiously.

“I was about to ask you the same question.”

“I couldn’t sleep, so I wrote a letter. I didn’t think Sirius would mind if I borrowed the owl.”

“He wouldn’t mind at all,” Remus whispered. “I’m sure the bird was very happy to have a job.”

“He was,” Y/n smiled. “Hey, you never told me why you’re up.”

“I heard you leave your room and wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“I’m all good, thanks for checking. You couldn’t sleep either?”

The light of the half moon was just enough that they would see each other’s faces. Remus looked embarrassed. “Truthfully, this whole thing has been a little awkward. It’s a little strange being in your company again.”

“I don’t have to come here, if it makes you uncomfortable…” 

“I never said I didn’t like it,” he whispered.

Remus closed the gap between the two and Y/n suddenly felt very flushed. Was he going to kiss her? Would she let him?

Suddenly they were bathed in a bright light. Y/n squinted and saw Sirius leaning against the doorframe with his hand resting upon the light switch.  
“Oh, don’t let me stop you…please continue.”

Y/n jumped away from Remus and looked down, suddenly remembering how very bare her legs were. She pulled the shirt down as far as she could.

“Looks great on you by the way,” Sirius winked.

“Oh shut up Sirius!” Y/n groaned, before running back up the stairs and into the safety of her room. She didn’t care that Walburga black was screaming in the hallway, Sirius deserved it.

The next morning, Y/n awoke later than she would have liked, but Walburga’s portrait had kept her up quite late with all the noise. Remembering her unfortunate encounter with Sirius the night before and how Remus had gotten rather close, she was apprehensive heading downstairs. In fact, after getting changed back into her clothes from the day before, she was half tempted to apparate to Hogsmeade from her room. Something in her gut forced her to be brave though, so she wandered down the stairs to join them.

Both Sirius and Remus were in the lounge sipping coffee and reading The Daily Prophet. Neither seemed to notice that Y/n had entered, so when she spoke they jumped in their seats. 

“Morning gentlemen, anything worth reporting?” she asked, gesturing to their papers.

“Bloody hell Y/n!” Sirius hissed while attempting to cool his lap. He’d spilled some coffee. Remus chuckled, Sirius shot him a glare. 

“Someone’s in a grumpy mood,” Y/n teased.

“Someone didn’t get much sleep last night,” he grumbled back.

“To answer your question,” Remus began. “No, nothing to report just yet.” He shifted in his seat awkwardly when he looked into Y/n’s eyes. In typical Remus fashion, it appeared as though whatever he had been feeling the night before, was now over.

“Well if that’s the case, I wouldn’t mind heading back to Hogwarts now.”

“It was good to see you,” Sirius smiled. “Didn’t expect I’d see so much of you though…”

Y/n rolled her eyes. “And on that note, I’m out of here.” She turned to Remus, “it really was good seeing you again.” She genuinely meant it too. Even if they couldn’t be together romantically, she was just happy to be in his presence.

“You too,” Remus replied softly.

With a pop, Y/n was gone. She could feel herself being pulled and stretched and was grateful when the feeling stopped. Y/n chose to apparate right in Seraya’s kitchen. It had been a while since they’d actually had a chance to catch up. 

It was after opening time for Tomes and Scrolls, so she knew that Seraya would be in the front where the shop was. Y/n bent down and gave Jasper a rub under his chin. He was getting so old now. Y/n wondered how much longer the sassy feline had. He’d been old when she was still in Hogwarts. He purred appreciatively, lifted his head to look at her and mewed in his excited little raspy way that Y/n had grown to love. It was moments like this, that she missed living in the store.

After promising Jasper she would say goodbye before she left, Y/n wandered into the storefront. “Hey stranger!” Y/n said, trying not to startle her friend. 

“Y/n dear!” the older witch was filled with joy. “I heard someone arrive, I just figured Willard was being lazy.”

Y/n laughed, “you mean to tell me he’s been apparating between the two stores?”

“Yes,” Seraya sighed. “Speaking of, let me send for him. I’m sure he’ll want to see you.”

As Seraya conjured a patronus to tell Willard to join them, Y/n browsed the ‘new arrival’ books.

“You got some good stuff!” she commented. Seraya had already made her way to the kitchen to make some tea. Y/n could hear the kettle whistling. Beside her Willard appeared.

“There she is!” he swept her in a tight hug. “We’ve missed you, kiddo.”

“Ditto,” Y/n choked as Willard continued the hug.

Y/n, Seraya and Willard sat in the store front and caught up. She’d written the two almost immediately after the events of the final task and had given them a brief rundown. She would have hated them having to hear about it in the Prophet or as some Hogsmeade gossip. Now that it was just the three of them, she had a chance to go into a little more detail.

“So where is he now?” asked Willard

“Barty Jnr?”

“Yes, what happened to the bastard?”

“Fudge ordered the Dementors kiss. No way of him standing on trial and testifying that Voldemort is back.”

“Don’t say his name!” both Seraya and Willard hissed.

“Sorry…you-know-who.”

“Well, we’re not surprised Fudge did that. He doesn’t want to believe that he’s back. It’s not good for his political career.”

“His inability to see the truth is going to get innocent people killed,” Y/n sighed.

“He’s foolish,” Seraya agreed.

Y/n kissed both of her friends on the cheek and gave Jasper a big cuddle before leaving.

“He’s really starting to slow down, poor boy,” Willard whispered. “I don’t know how Seraya is going to cope.”

“Just make the remainder of his days as comfy as can be,” Y/n smiled sadly. She was going to miss him so much.

“Will we see you again before the end of the break?” Seraya asked.

“Course you will, but I may be in Romania for a while.” Seraya raised her eyebrows and gave her a knowing look.

“Well in that case, have fun.”

Back in the castle, Y/n was greeted by a few letters on her bedside table. Unfortunately none were from Charlie, though she wasn’t expecting a reply this soon. Tonks and Hermione had written.

Y/n ripped open the letter from Tonks first. She hadn’t heard from her friend in a while. She anticipated that her work as an Auror had her quite busy as of late.

\-------------------  
Wotcher Y/n,

I’m sorry it’s taken so long to reply to your letter. Truth be told, it did only arrive a few days ago. I’m assuming the poor owl had a hard time tracking me down and gave up before leaving it with my folks.

Y/n, I feel so foolish for not thinking something was up with imposter Alastor sooner. The first interaction you had with him, he gave you a weird feeling and I pushed it aside. Will you forgive me for being such a prat? 

I’ve visited Alastor in St Mungo’s a few times in between days off. Though, those are rare these days. He’s doing fine by the way, mostly his pissed that this happened in the first place. 

He did speak highly of you though. Seems you made quite the impression in the short time you spoke.

I hope you’re okay. I think the two of us will be seeing each other sooner than you think by the way! 

Anyway, talk later!  
\-------------------

Y/n stared at the letter in disbelief. How could she blame herself? It’s not like she’d been there and experienced imposter Alastor in the flesh. Y/n would write to Tonks and let her know that in no way did she blame her for what had transpired.

She opened the next envelope and Hermione’s letter fell into her lap. Hermione’s small, dainty handwriting was so perfect. She really was something else.

\-------------------  
Hello Y/n,

I’m sorry our conversation was cut short the other day. I really wanted to tell you some exciting news that I have a feeling you will find very interesting. I figured out how Rita was doing it! She is an illegal Animagus! A beetle more specifically. I told her I wouldn’t share this with the Ministry so long as she didn’t write about us anymore. She promised, so we don’t have to worry about her nasty stories.

I’ll miss you over the break! Hopefully we can catch up at some point.

Hermione

\-------------------

Hermione had done it! She’d solved the problem and it made complete sense. If Rita had been lurking within the library disguised as a beetle, both Charlie and Y/n would have never noticed a thing. How many times had Rita been snooping around? Y/n was livid. She wrote her replies to both Tonks and Hermione then decided to go for a walk around the grounds.

A few days passed before Charlie’s reply was delivered. Y/n recognised Sirius’s owl flying towards her, carrying a small note. Her heart began to beat a little faster in anticipation of what she was about to read. Had he changed his mind since asking her? When the owl stopped in front of her, it held out the leg where the letter was tied. Y/n got to work unraveling the string. A sigh of relief left her when she finished reading. Of course, Charlie was still eager for her to visit. He even suggested she visit as soon as next week.

“Looks like I’m going to Romania,” she smiled. The excitement of seeing Charlie after all this time was too much. She felt as if she may explode.

Y/n hadn’t seen Albus since he had handed her the address for Grimmauld place, so she decided to pay him a visit. She figured he should know of her intentions to leave town for a while, considering he was the one who invited her to join The Order.

In all honesty, Y/n wasn’t even certain that he was still in the castle. He may be out recruiting for The Order or on a mission. She took the chance and wandered to the stone gargoyle that acted guard for his office. 

“Fudge flies,” Y/n spoke. Hoping that the password hadn’t changed since the last time she was in there. Thankfully it hadn’t. The gargoyle jumped aside and Y/n ascended the spiral staircase. At the top, she could hear Albus talking. She knocked and waited.

The voices quietened and Albus spoke. “Enter…”

Y/n opened the door and walked through. She’d never seen the man standing next to Albus before. She smiled politely at the pair.

“Ah Miss L/n, please make yourself comfortable.” He gestured towards a chair in front of his desk. “Kingsley was just leaving.”

“I didn’t mean to interrupt, I’m so sorry.”

“Not at all!” Albus began. “Where are my manners?!” He guided Y/n towards the Wizard named Kingsley. She’d never seen him before. “Kingsley Shacklebolt this is Y/n L/n. Our Librarian and newest recruit.”

Kingsley held out a hand which Y/n took happily. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss L/n. I’ve heard brilliant things.”

The middle-aged man nodded at Albus, bowed politely in Y/n’s direction then proceeded to head down the stairs. Y/n turned towards Albus, “I do hope that I didn’t stop you from anything important.”

“Kingsley was on his way out Y/n, don’t fret.” He offered her a reassuring smile.

“I take it Kingsley is a member of The Order?”

“He is.”

“What is it that he does?” Y/n was curious, considering neither Sirius nor Remus had mentioned this man before.

“Believe it or not, he’s in charge of finding Sirius,” he chuckled.

“So he’s the reason they’re looking for him in Tibet?” Albus nodded. This time it was Y/n’s turn to chuckle. “Ha! That’s brilliant.”

“Indeed it is. Now, I assume you came to talk to me about something important.”

“Yes actually, I was planning on visiting Charlie Weasley in Romania.”

“Oh?” 

“Am I okay to go?”

Dumbledore stared at her with an amused face, “Miss L/n, are you asking my permission to leave the country?”

“I am.”

He chuckled, “you don’t need my permission, but if that will make you feel better, you’re free to go.”

Y/n blushed, she was completely embarrassed. “I just didn’t want to leave The Order high and dry.”

Albus nodded thoughtfully. “I understand your concern, but perhaps your visit could be of some assistance.”

“I want to help! In any way.”

“Would you talk to Charlie about joining The Order? Molly has been reluctant in allowing her children to participate. I feel having someone in another Country would benefit us greatly. Especially in recruiting foreign witches and wizards.”

It made sense, but how would Molly react if she knew Y/n was the one to talk to Charlie? Molly had already harboured anger towards Y/n previously. And that was when she thought Y/n had broken Charlie’s heart. Thankfully Charlie had managed to talk Molly down from that, though something told her it wouldn’t be as easy this time.

“I can give it a go, but it’s up to Charlie.”

“Brilliant.”

Y/n finished packing her suitcase and glanced at the clock. Charlie was expecting her soon. Instead of risking apparating to a place she’d never visited before, they had decided on her travelling via Floo. Albus had invited Y/n to his office to use his fireplace because he needed to give her something before she left.

As she began walking towards Dumbledore’s office the excitement began to build. Though she was a little nervous about bringing up the topic of The Order. She’d have to mention Remus and although Charlie had never come across as the jealous type, Y/n was unsure how he would react to the two former lovers working in such close proximity again.

When Y/n reached the stone gargoyle, she muttered the new password Albus had set and enchanted her trunk to follow behind her. At the top, Albus greeted her.

“Take this,” he said, handing Y/n a piece of parchment. “When you feel it’s best to bring up The Order of the Phoenix and should he accept, he will need to see this. Keep it safe.”

“I’ll protect it with my life,” she smiled while tucking the parchment into her breast pocket.

“You’re more than welcome to use my fireplace on your journey back, should you wish to catch up,” Albus offered. “Do you know when that will be?”

“Charlie has permission for me to stay for a week.”

“Well, I’ll see you in a week.”

Albus patted Y/n’s arm in a fatherly way and led her towards his fireplace. “Ready?”

Y/n gulped and stepped forward. It had been quite a while since she’d travelled by floo. With a handful of powder in one hand and her trunk in the other, Y/n spoke very clearly. “Romanian Dragon Sanctuary.”

Instantaneously she was pulled through what felt like a million fire places. They all passed in a blur, which began making her feel nauseous, so she closed her eyes for the remainder. Finally she felt her body stop, yet her eyes remained closed. 

“You can open your eyes, Y/n,” came a cheeky voice that she knew all too well.

Y/n opened her eyes to see a rather amused looking Charlie sitting on a chair. Without any warning she dropped her trunk on the floor and launched herself at him. Charlie happily accepted the attack of kisses she smothered him with.

“I’ve missed you,” he managed through the pepper of pecks that she was leaving on his face.

“Ditto,” she muttered.

For a few moments, the two sat in the chair with Y/n in his lap. Neither wanted to be the first one to get up. Finally, Charlie gave her a squeeze and lifted her off him.

“Let’s get you settled, shall we?”

Charlie led Y/n out of the building she had arrived in and began walking her through the sanctuary. He happily explained the buildings they passed as they travelled to Charlie’s cabin. “So that building we were just in is the main office. My boss works in there, but he left to give us a little alone time.”

Y/n chuckled as he continued. “Right over there is where they keep the sick or injured dragons and over there is where the nursery is.”

“So the mothers protecting the eggs at the tournament would have come from there?”

“Yep! The very place. I can show you later.”

Watching Charlie walk around and explain everything so enthusiastically was bittersweet for Y/n. On one hand she adored how happy and comfortable he appeared, on the other, it really dawned on her that he would probably never want to come back to England. Y/n pushed those thoughts out of her head. That problem was reserved for future her.

Charlie paused out the front of a small cabin and opened the door, allowing Y/n to enter first. His living quarters were small, smaller than her rooms at Hogwarts at least. The size of the cabin did not faze her one bit though. It had such a cosy vibe that made it scream ‘Weasley’. She felt right at home instantly.

“It’s not much,” Charlie began, rubbing the back of his head self-consciously. “It serves me well though.”

“Are you kidding me?” Y/n turned to face Charlie. “I love it! I feel so comfortable here already.”

Charlie’s face lit up. Her words obviously meant a lot to him.

“Do you mind if I head out for a bit while you unpack. Just before you arrived my boss asked me to help the team after I settled you in.”

“Of course! I’ll be fine.”

After promising Y/n that he wouldn’t be long, Charlie left Y/n to unpack. She took out her clothes for the week and placed them neatly in one of the shelves Charlie had cleared for her. Normally a quick spell would have done the trick, but there really wasn’t a lot to put away, so she happily did it the muggle way.

Once everything in her trunk had a space, Y/n decided to explore the cabin. Beside his bed, lay a picture of the entire Weasley clan. The gift she had given him, a picture of his favourite Dragon species, was hanging on the wall above his bed. A few photos from their Hogwarts days were also displayed. Y/n made a mental note to get a recent photo of just the two of them. It was something she would love to have.

Charlie arrived back looking a little more dishevelled then when he had left. His face was sporting a cut that hadn’t been there earlier.

“Charlie! Are you okay?” She ran towards him and gently began inspecting his wound. He winced.

“I’ll be fine, nothing Nurse Y/n can’t fix.” He winked playfully, then winced again when he smiled. “Ouch, that hurt.”

“Don’t smile just yet! Here, let me grab my wand.” Y/n raced to the bedroom and grabbed her wand.

Charlie sat down in a chair and Y/n knelt before him, muttering a spell that would seal the wound and stop the bleeding. “You know, if you went to the infirmary here, it might not have left a scar…”  
She ran a finger over the freshly healed wound. There was now a thin, silvery line.

“But the nurse isn’t you,” Charlie whispered as he leaned forward. In an instant, Y/n was swept up in his charm. He grabbed her face gently and pressed his lips to hers. A small moan left her mouth before she could even stop herself. Charlies hold slightly increased in pressure, his hands were scrunching her hair, tugging slightly. Once again, she involuntarily moaned.

“Do you have anywhere you need to be?” Y/n asked through deep breaths.

“Nope, my boss gave me the rest of the day off.”

“Good.”

With a few flicks of her wand, the windows and curtains in Charlie’s cabin shut. The lock on the door clicked. Slowly Y/n backed away from Charlie, much to his disappointment. Hungrily he reached for her, but she backed away further.

“Patience Weasley…” 

With a huff, he collapsed back into the chair. Y/n began lowering the straps on her sundress. Charlie leaned forward expectantly. As she shimmied her way out of the dress, he gripped the arms of the chair. 

“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered.

The dress pooled at her feet. She stepped away from it and smiled. Her underwear never normally matched, but today she had made an effort. Y/n could tell Charlie approved. He shifted uncomfortably in his chair with anticipation. A few moments later and she was completely bare. 

“Your turn,” she winked. Charlie grabbed at his shirt and began to pull at it.

“No! Let me,” she requested.

In an instant he froze and let her take control. 

“Now stand up,” she ordered. He did.

Y/n slinked towards him and grabbed the hem of his shirt, pulling it over his head. His bare chest was so muscular. He’d definitely grown larger since the last time they’d been intimate together. Seductively she traced her soft fingers along the grooves of his chest and stomach, finally settling on the ‘v’ shaped markings above his groin.

“Let’s get these off.” She unbuckled his belt a little faster now. She was starting to tease herself. 

In a quick sweep, the belt fell to the floor. She dropped to her knees and eased his pants lower. His legs were covered in scars from all the Quidditch and dragon related injuries he’d received over time, but that only made her more attracted to him.

Taking her by surprise, Charlie lifted Y/n up and pulled her into his chest. She wrapped her legs around his torso. Both could feel each other’s eagerness.

“Sit on the chair Charlie,” Y/n urged breathily.

Charlie lowered himself onto the chair behind him. Y/n’s legs rested by his side comfortably. 

“You have no idea how much I’ve missed this,” Y/n smirked.

“Oh, I have a fair idea,” Charlie whispered as he buried his face into her neck.


	3. Truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y/n has to tell Charlie that she's a member of The Order and that she's seen Remus...how will the second eldest Weasley take the news?

Days at the Sanctuary were surprisingly enjoyable. Y/n truly hadn’t believed she would enjoy Romania so much. A large factor of her enjoyment was definitely due to spending so much time with Charlie. Though learning about the different species of dragons at the Sanctuary was certainly interesting.

A majority of the worksite was protected by spells, but occasionally Charlie would take her to a remote clearing where they could watch the magnificent creatures in their natural habitat. Only a few close calls were had. Each time Charlie grabbed Y/n’s wrist and disapparated from the area before anything serious happened.

Y/n of course got to know a few of his colleagues too. In the evenings after a long day of work, a small group would get together in one of the cabins and drink large quantities of fire whiskey. Here she got to learn a bunch of hilarious anecdotes about Charlies first few months at the Sanctuary. 

In all honesty, she could completely understand why Charlie loved working in Romania so much. Once again she found herself feeling sad. Charlie would probably never be interested in moving back to England with her or his family. Was she wasting her time with him? Were they better suited as friends? These were the questions she found herself wondering one evening while the group were in Charlie’s cabin. 

“Oi L/n! You alright?” Ambrose, Charlie’s boss called. Y/n jumped at the sudden interest everyone had taken with her. She quickly glanced at Charlie who was looking at her with a very serious face.

Eager to have the attention off of her, she replied, “I’m fine! I may have had too much fire whiskey though…feeling a little lightheaded.”

Charlie spoke up, “You want to head into the bedroom Y/n? I’ll come check on you soon.”

Y/n nodded her head and gave everyone an awkward little wave, then entered the bedroom. For a few moments she stood against the closed door and tried to calm herself before Charlie came in. Outside she could hear shuffling, it seemed as though people were packing it in for the night.

Changing out of her clothes and into her robe for a bath, Y/n contemplated what she would say when Charlie finally asked what was up. He knew her so well. He could tell when she was lying. 

She heard the main door to the cabin close and Charlie’s feet shuffling towards the bedroom. Y/n decided that now was the time to address Dumbledore’s invitation to join The Order. It would be a good distraction instead of talking about their future. She wasn’t quite ready to have that conversation just yet.

When Charlie entered the room, Y/n noticed that his brow was creased. He was obviously worried about her.

“I’m fine!” Y/n sighed. “Really…I am.”

“What’s on your mind then? You have been quiet all night…and don’t blame the fire whiskey. I know you better than that.”

“Join me for a bath? I’ll tell you everything…I promise.”

Y/n and Charlie made their way into the bathroom and turned the tap on. As they waited for the tub to fill, Y/n began explaining.

“Do you remember the stories we heard at school about The Order of the Phoenix?”

“Yeah…why are you bringing it up now?”

“Well, it’s real. Albus told me so…”

Charlie stared at Y/n with a puzzled look.

“Since Vold-”

“Don’t say his name.”

“Since his return, Albus has gotten the original members back together and has recruited some more.”

“And you know this because?”

“Because he asked me to join…and he wants you to as well.”

“Blimey! This is a lot to take in Y/n.”

“It gets crazier…your parents are members.”

“You’re telling me that my parents, Molly and Arthur Weasley are members of The Order of the Phoenix!? Why the bloody hell didn’t they tell us kids?”

“I think they planned on telling soon, your family is moving in to Headquarters at some point over the break.”

Charlie’s frown didn’t leave his face. He was clearly annoyed with his parents for not sharing such important information with him.

“Who else is in The Order? Anyone I know?”

Y/n took a deep breath. This was the question she was stressing he would ask. How would he react when she told him that she’d stayed the night at Sirius’s house with Remus being in the next room?

“The original members are who you’d assume they would be…Albus, Minerva, Sirius and Remus.”

“Remus?!”

Y/n nodded as she watched Charlie collect his thoughts for a moment. The silence was unbearable.

“So why would Albus want me to join? What could I possibly do all the way over here?”

“He wants you to recruit trustworthy witches and wizards to help the cause.”

“Makes sense. I’ll do it.”

“You will?” 

“Can’t let you have all the fun, can I?”

By now the bath was full and steaming. Y/n removed her robe and lowered herself in. Charlie unbuttoned his shirt and pants and did the same. Despite how small his accommodations were, Y/n relished how large his tub was. The two could easily fit and still had room to move. They both sunk to their shoulders and relaxed, allowing the warm water to ease their muscles. The hikes they had been going on proved to be taking a toll.

“So I take it you’ve seen Remus then?” Charlie asked, pulling Y/n out of her trance.

“I have…”

“And how’d that go?”

“Fine.”

“Just fine?” 

Y/n could tell he had been stewing over it since she’d first mentioned it. “What do you want me to say? I went to Sirius’s, I had no idea he would be there…”

Charlie scoffed, “yeah right…”

“I didn’t peg you to be the jealous type.”

“Well, what do you expect from me Y/n? You could have led with all of this!”

“Sorry that I didn’t know how to bring up asking you to join an organisation that will mark you as a blood traitor to the Death Eaters and you-know-who!”

Y/n rose from the tub and rushed towards her robe, dripping bubbly water as she went. Charlie rose also. The bath water sloshed the sides of the tub aggressively. Charlie followed Y/n into the room where she had already pulled on a pair of shorts and was in the process of slinking into a t-shirt. She pulled the letter Albus had given her from her trunk and threw it towards him.

“From Albus…destroy once you’ve read it.” She began looking for her wand.

“Y/n, where are you going?” 

“Home.”

“But you still have a few more days…”

“I don’t want to stay any longer,” Y/n grumbled as she swished her wand and guided her belongings into her trunk.

“Running back to Remus then?”

Now red faced, Y/n grabbed her trunk, hurried out the door and began sprinting across the Sanctuary’s grounds. She could hear the door to Charlie’s cabin slam shut.

“Y/n! I’m sorry! I didn’t mean that…that was a stupid thing to say. Forgive me?”

He was catching up to her. She wouldn’t make it to Ambrose’s office in time to travel by Floo. As his footsteps neared, Y/n thought of where she could apparate too. Hogwarts was impossible and she didn’t want to interrupt Seraya and Willard with her drama. Tonks was more than likely on a mission for the Auror’s department or The Order. There really was only one place she could go…

In her head, she envisioned the kitchen in Grimmauld Place. A part of her was telling her not to do it, the other part was pushing her to be spiteful. She decided on the latter. Just as Charlie was about to catch her, she disapparated. The last thing she saw was a blurred vision of a distressed looking Charlie before she was pulled and transported to her destination.

Sirius got the fright of his life when Y/n appeared red faced and splotchy eyed beside him. She saw him jump at her sudden appearance.

“Blimey Y/n! Don’t ever do that again…I could have been starkas.” He was clutching his chest.

“No time, hide me.”

Sirius’s face in an instant turned serious. “What’s happened?”

“Charlie and I had a fight. He knows about this place and he may very well come here looking for me.”

“You can wait in my room,” he said as he began urging her up the stairs.

Y/n glanced towards Remus’s door as they passed it in the hallway.

“He’s not here,” Sirius smirked.

“Where-”

“On a mission for The Order…”

Sirius guided Y/n in his room and promised he would return after Charlie left. Of course that all depended on if he even showed up. After what she thought was a half hour or so, Sirius slinked into the room and shut the door.

“I don’t think he’s coming…”

Y/n wasn’t sure if she was relieved or disappointed by this news. 

“Wanna tell me what happened?”

Y/n explained her and Charlie’s conversation while Sirius listened intently. Nodding his head occasionally.

“So he cracked it when he found out you’d seen Remus?”

“Correct.”

“Forget about him for a while.”

“Easier said than done, Sirius.”

“Do you want to stay here?” 

“Just for tonight if you don’t mind. If I return to Hogwarts now, Albus will most likely want to discuss Charlie with me. I don’t think I’m up for that.”

Just thinking about how she’d left things with Charlie made her heart ache. Why did things have to take that turn? She had never seen Charlie so heated before. His reaction had certainly taken her by surprise, especially considering the ‘casual’ relationship was sort of his idea. 

Hot tears began forming in her red eyes and Sirius began rubbing circles into her back. Y/n snuggled into her friend and he enveloped her into a tight hug. It was at this point that she realised how great a friend Sirius had become. Sure, he liked to tease the shit out of her but he really had a heart of pure gold.

The more Y/n sobbed, the tireder she grew and soon her heavy eyes could no longer stay open. 

Y/n awoke with a start when someone cleared their throat. To her absolute horror, Remus was standing in the doorway. Still encased in Sirius’s hold, she noticed he had yet to awaken. She nudged his ribs with her elbow.

“Ugh!” He sputtered. “Nice way to show appreciation for last night.” He looked up and saw Remus standing there. 

“Morning mate! S’not what it looks like, she came here crying last night and I comforted her.”

Once again Y/n nudged his ribs. Remus learning of her argument with Charlie was the last thing she needed.

“You were crying?” Remus asked with a sad voice. Any anger he had shown earlier when he had found them in a hold, was now gone.

“I’m fine, Sirius is exaggerating.” She shot Sirius a glare and hopped up from his bed. Y/n caught a glance of herself in the mirror. Remus would be able to know she had been crying just by looking at her swollen eyes.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Remus pressed.

Y/n shook her head. “I actually am planning on leaving now. Thank you for letting me stay the evening.”

Within seconds Y/n grabbed her trunk and disappeared with a pop, leaving the two men staring at the spot where she had just been.

“Are you going to tell me what happened?” Remus asked his friend.

“Let’s just say, I don’t think Charlie Weasley will be a problem anymore.” He winked at his mate and pushed past him. “Let’s have some breakky, I’m starving!”

Y/n apparated as close to Hogwarts as she could. The walk would do her some good before she needed to see Albus. Her trunk followed along beside her as she walked the path slowly, stopping occasionally to pick a flower or observe an animal.

When the castle came into view, Y/n decided she still wasn’t ready to face Dumbledore, so she headed towards the Black Lake. Her favourite spot was calling her name. Though, when Y/n made it to the beech tree, she found that she wasn’t alone.

Albus Dumbledore was standing on the edge of the lake, shoeless and holding his robes up to his ankles.

“Hello Y/n.” He turned to face her. For a few seconds she wanted to ask how he knew that it was her, but she stopped herself. He was one of the greatest wizards of all time and she needed to stop questioning it.

“Good morning,” she smiled, kicking her own shoes off.

“When I woke up, I had the strangest urge to visit the lake today. Now I know why.”

Y/n carefully treaded over the slippery stones and pebbles to stand beside him. They both looked out at the serene lake.

“You’re back early,” he stated.

“I am,” she replied.

“I take it, things did not go as smoothly as you would have liked?”

“Things were going great! Until I mentioned seeing Remus.”

Albus slowly nodded his head and chuckled knowingly.

“Speaking of,” Y/n began. “A little heads up about running into him would have been appreciated.”

“I feared…you would not wish to join if you knew your former boyfriend was a member.”

“You’re probably right,” she agreed.

“And I desperately wanted you to join.”

“Why me, Albus?”

“Your tenacity, your wisdom, your bravery, your kindness…need I say more?”

Y/n blushed, “I’m not all those things Albus.”

He tutted his disapproval at her. “Oh, but you are…one day you’ll see that.”

“Charlie said he’d join,” Y/n said, changing the subject. She’d never been good at taking compliments.

“Marvellous. Thank you for asking him. I am sorry though, if this caused a wedge.”

“It’ll be fine. I just need some space.”

“Well, I will happily correspond with Charlie should something come up. I have already asked of too much from you.”

Dumbledore turned to leave and began walking back to where his shoes lay on the bank. “Thank you again, Miss L/n.”

Y/n decided to stay by the lakeside for most of the afternoon, soaking up the rays and listening to the calming sounds of the water lapping at the lakes edge. She needed some time to herself, to truly work out how she was feeling about everything.

Over the course of the next few weeks, Y/n received multiple letters from Charlie begging for her forgiveness. “I was stupid, I was jealous, I don’t know what came over me.” It was all the same. And though she desperately wanted to reply, Y/n felt like she owed it to herself to not worry about the men in her life for a little while.

For so long she had been caught up on Remus and Charlie, that she hadn’t taken some time for herself. While Albus hadn’t given her another task, she decided to make the most of her break. She spent time by the lake reading, visited Seraya and Willard, met with Tonks in Hogsmeade when she was free and did some shopping in Diagon Alley for some new clothes for the upcoming year. One of her absolute favourite things to do was to attend the movie theatre, so she made sure to do that too. After a few weeks of ‘Y/n time’ she began feeling like a new person.

Late one evening in early August, there came a knock on her door. “Come in,” she called. She guessed it was Albus, by the gentle sound. If it had been Hagrid, the door would have vibrated loudly with each knock. Her guess had been correct when the door swung open. Albus Dumbledore was standing there, somehow looking feeble and powerful at the same time.

“I’m sorry to interrupt your reading,” he gently spoke.

“Not at all, please have a seat.”

The older wizard accepted the spot on the couch beside her and glanced at her book.

“Valley of the Dolls?”

“It’s one of my favourite muggle books,” she smiled. “Old Hollywood…”

Albus grabbed the book from the table in front of them and read the back. “I don’t think I would enjoy this,” he said.

Y/n laughed, “No, I don’t think you would.” He placed the book back down and turned to face her.

“There was a purpose to me coming here this evening.”

“I’m all ears,” she nervously spoke. She’d learned by now that nine times out of ten, when Albus asked a favour, it would end in some kind of misery. At least that’s how it had been lately anyway.

“Harry was attacked by Dementors in Little Whinging last night.”

Y/n stood up from her chair in panic. “I’m sorry, what?!”

“He is fine, Y/n. Though the attack did occur in front of his cousin and Harry did perform the Patronus.”

“Is he in trouble with the Ministry?”

“He is.”

“Has he been expelled?”

“He has been suspended, pending a disciplinary meeting.”

“Merlin! What can we do?!”

“His hearing is in a few weeks. Right now, he is safe at the Dursleys.”

Y/n scoffed. Safe with the Dursleys? Was Albus mad? These people were the scum of the earth. The way they treated Harry was hideous.

“Albus, what can I do?” she asked.

“This Friday, we will be transporting Harry to Headquarters, where he will be spending the remainder of the summer break. We have a number of people acting as advanced guard…however, I’m sure Harry would appreciate having a familiar face.”

“And you want me to be a part of that guard?”

He simply nodded his head in reply. “Okay,” she agreed. 

“Thank you, I’ll give you further details soon…but for now, Anne, Jennifer and Neely are waiting for you.” He picked up the book from the table and handed it to Y/n, before disappearing through the door.

On Friday Morning, Y/n awoke and found a letter pinned to the door in her room. 

‘Be safe.’

Y/n figured that she would be given further details once she arrived at Grimmauld Place, so she packed an overnight bag just in case, had a shower and dressed herself in a pair of jeans and a blouse. She would leave now so that she had ample time to prepare for collecting Harry.

With her backpack slung over her shoulder and a handful of floo powder, she said her destination aloud. Fireplace after fireplace whizzed by her, only this time it didn’t go for nearly as long as the trip to Romania had.

She had barely been in the fireplace at Grimmauld Place a few seconds, before she felt a pair of arms wrap her into a tight hug. “Missed you!” Tonks cried as she clumsily spun Y/n around. Despite her small frame, Tonks was rather strong. The two ended up a heap on the floor and began laughing. They were soon joined by a few others who had witnessed the tumble.

“Missed me? We saw each other only a few weeks ago,” Y/n laughed as she peeled herself off of Tonks.

“Well I’m excited that we’ll be seeing more of each other now that we’re both doing this stuff.” Tonks looked at Y/n with pride. She had been wanting her to join her in the Auror department since leaving school. And although Y/n would have thrived, it wasn’t something that she necessarily wanted to do for the rest of her life.

Y/n held out her hands and eased Tonks up off the ground. Y/n looked around and smiled at some familiar faces as well as some not so familiar...

“Introductions are in order!” Tonks excitedly shouted. One by one Y/n was pulled to meet the others. “This is Emmeline Vance, Elphias Doge, Dedalus Diggle, Hestia Jones and Sturgis Podmore.”

Y/n shook their hands politely before Tonks pulled her into the kitchen, where Alastor, Remus, Kingsley and Sirius were talking. Sirius did not look happy.

“We cannot risk you being seen Sirius!” Alastor grumbled.

“But he’s my bloody godson!”

“That does not matter, Sirius. You are meant to be in Tibet. If you are seen, it would be disastrous.”

“Y/n’s here!” Tonks interrupted. The four turned towards her. Y/n’s face turned a deep shade of pink.

Y/n nudged Tonks in the arm and whispered, “You did NOT have to interrupt!”

She rolled her eyes, “Please, they’ve been arguing all morning.” 

Y/n couldn’t help but notice Remus begin to shuffle nervously. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Tonks also noticed. The two girls made eye contact and Tonks wiggled her eyebrows at Y/n. She was just as bad as Sirius!

“I’ll be going now,” Y/n turned, but Sirius had already slung an arm around her shoulder and had her in a tight hold.

“Finally! Someone who will agree with me. Do you think I should be allowed to come to collect Harry tonight?”

Y/n looked at the other men who all groaned in frustration. “I’m not getting involved in this…”

“He’s not meant to be in the country,” Kingsley argued.

“I’m a bloody Animagus! No one will know it’s me!”

“And what good would an oversized dog on a broom be?” Alastor growled. 

Both Y/n and Tonks cackled. “He’s got you there, cuz!” Tonks laughed.

“Y/n, please say you agree with me,” Sirius pleaded. He stared at her with puppy dog eyes and for a second she wanted to say yes, but Remus interrupted her train of thought.

“She said she didn’t want to be involved. Besides, Peter has probably divulged your ability already. We cannot risk you being seen!”

Sirius looked at Remus and shot him a glare. “FINE! Bugger all of you.” He released his grip on Y/n and stormed off. She went to follow but Tonks held her back.

“Leave him,” her friend said. “No use talking to him when he’s in a mood like that.”

Y/n heard the door slam upstairs and soon the entire house was shaking with the rage from Walburga Blacks shrieks. Y/n covered her ears.

“Let’s go on the patio and discuss this evening,” Tonks suggested. “Get away from the yelling.”

“Won’t the muggle neighbours hear us?” 

Alastor chuckled, “they won’t hear a thing…”

Y/n smiled timidly at Alastor Moody. She hadn’t seen him since the end of term when they had both been trapped inside a trunk, thanks to Barty Crouch Jnr. Remus, Tonks, Y/n, Alastor and Kingsley headed out the back door and took a seat on the edge of the deck.

“Don’t worry about any creatures nibbling at your toes,” Tonks chuckled as Y/n hesitated. “I cleaned them out earlier.”

“It’s nice to officially meet you Miss L/n,” Alastor spoke. “The last time we chatted, well, I wasn’t in a good way. You remember.”

She nodded her head and looked at the sky. Right now the last thing she wanted to discuss were the events of last term.

As if Remus read her mind, he changed the subject. “Shall we fill Y/n in on what is happening tonight?”

“A good suggestion Remus,” Kingsley agreed. “I assume that is why you arrived early?”

“Yes.”

“Harry Potter will be staying here for the remainder of the summer break. Given the circumstances with the Dementor attack, we figured it best that we accompany him to ensure his safety. We still aren’t certain who sent them or why they attacked in front of a muggle.” Alastor was very to the point when addressing the group. Y/n quite liked it.

“I’m in charge of making sure that the Dursleys are out of the house,” Tonks proudly interrupted. “Just wait until you hear-”

“As I was saying,” Alastor cut off. “We will be flying via broomstick, are you a good flier?”

“I’m okay…”

Alastor rolled his real eye and Y/n could have sworn his magical one followed suit. “Why did Albus recommend you then?”

“Because she’s probably better at flying than half the old codgers in there…and she’s a brilliant dueller,” Tonks argued.

Y/n blushed and smiled at her friend. Tonks always had the best way of making her feel empowered.

“Well,” Alastor sighed. “All you have to do is stay in formation. Can you handle that?”

Y/n nodded. “I can do this.”

A familiar shrill shriek behind them alerted Y/n to Molly Weasleys presence. Beside her stood Ron, the twins, Ginny and Hermione. 

“I only just found out you got in!” Molly smiled, rushing towards Y/n and pulling her into a tight hug. 

“Let the poor woman go mum!” George laughed.

“Blimey mum! She needs to be breathing in order to be useful!” Fred chuckled.

Behind Mollys back, Y/n shot the finger at the pair who burst into laughter. The warm welcome was nice though…Charlie obviously hadn’t told his family about their argument.

Both Ginny and Hermione were next to give Y/n a hug. Ron waved awkwardly from behind them.

“Y/n dear, you’ll have to tell us all about your trip to the Sanctuary. I know Charlie was so excited to have you visiting!”

No one appeared to notice Y/n’s discomfort except for Tonks, who promptly stood by Y/n’s side and began addressing the Weasley matriarch.

“Sorry Molly!” Tonks sing-songed. “I have lots of Order stuff I need to update Y/n on. I’m sure she can tell you all about it later.”

“Yes, plenty of time!” Molly agreed. “Right kids! Let’s get back to cleaning.”

Y/n heard a collective groan from the Weasley clan and squeezed Tonks’s hand gratefully.

“Thank you,” Y/n whispered.

“Don’t think you’re getting out of things that easily” Tonks whispered back. “I’m just as eager to hear everything!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh! Sorry for the late upload. This week has been rough.
> 
> Hope you enjoy! x


	4. Harry

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y/n and the rest of the Advanced Guard collect Harry and bring him to Headquarters. Things get heated after dinner.

Tonks and Y/n spent the rest of the afternoon chatting about Romania, Charlie, Remus and the Order. Tonks had been pretty busy working for the Ministry as well as the Order, but she was handling it pretty well. One thing about Tonks was that despite her wicked sense of humour, she had an amazing work ethic. 

“So what have they got you doing?” Y/n asked, curious about the types of things she had been up too.

“Well, I’ve been keeping an eye on some old Death Eaters who claimed they had been forced to join by you-know-who and Albus has us recruiting for the cause of course.”

Y/n shrunk into the bed that the two were lounging on. That’s what Albus had specifically wanted Charlie to do in Romania. It was the main purpose for him joining the Order.

“Anyway, enough about me and what I’m doing…what about you?”

“What about me? I haven’t done anything special for the Order. This is the most important task I’ve received thus far.”

“That’s not true…Dumbledore asked you to get Charlie to join! You said so earlier.”

“Yeah and see where that got me?”

“You can’t blame yourself because of Charlie’s stupidity! Gosh, if he was here, I’d kick his ass.”

“Can you blame him though? I wasn’t exactly honest when I first arrived. We spent days together before I even brought up the Order and seeing Remus again.”

“I suppose…but he needed to trust you. Ex’s can work together and it be totally normal.”

Y/n collapsed all the way on the bed and grabbed a pillow to cover her face. She groaned with embarrassment as she remembered the look in Remus’s eyes the evening he found her in the kitchen. He had looked as though he was going to kiss her. She hadn’t yet told anyone about that.

“Y/n…did something happen?” Tonks pulled the pillow away and was shooting an inquisitive glance her way.

“I think he was going to kiss me the other night…we haven’t discussed it though, so I can’t be sure.”

“But nothing happened?”

“No,” Y/n swallowed. “But that’s not the point.”

“Well, what is?”

“I think I would have let him, Tonks...”

“Oh.”

“Merlin! What is wrong with me?! I really like Charlie, but he’s already made it abundantly clear that he loves Romania and working at the Sanctuary. He will never return home…Romania is his home now. I love working at Hogwarts…despite almost dying two years in a row, so I don’t want to leave…”

“And what about Remus?”

“I was in love with Remus…I saw myself growing old with Remus. I obviously still have feelings for him. But he doesn’t see us in that way. He says it’s too dangerous and that I should be with someone younger.”

“You want my honest opinion?”

“Give it to me!” Y/n pleaded.

“You’re completely and utterly screwed! This is why I don’t date.”

Y/n burst out laughing and punched her friend in the arm. “Some help you are!”

The girls were still in a fit of giggles when they heard a knock on the door. “You may enter,” Tonks shouted.

Both girls immediately stopped when they saw Remus and Alastor in the doorway. ‘Shit!’ Y/n thought. ‘How long had he been standing there? Had he heard what she said?’ Her heart began to pound so loud that she was sure everyone in the room could hear it.

“Ready to go?” Alastor grunted.

“Yep!” Tonks replied for the two of them. She pulled Y/n from the bed and directed her past the two men. Y/n made sure to avoid eye contact with Remus as they passed. 

“This conversation isn’t over by the way,” Tonks whispered to Y/n as they headed down the stairs together.

Sirius had emerged from wherever he had been all day in a last ditch effort to convince the guard to allow him to come. Alastor and Kingsley were adamant he was not to attend. Remus patted his friend on the back. “We’ll be back before you know it,” he smiled pityingly.

“Just bring me my godson,” Sirius pleaded.

“You’ll be reunited before you know it,” Y/n said as she pressed a light kiss on his cheek.

Sirius perked up, “if I keep moping about, will you keep kissing me?”

“Sorry, that was a onetime only kiss. Relish it, because it won’t be happening again.”

“If you’re ready!” Alastor began. Y/n instantly turned her full attention on Moody who seemed not at all impressed with the light-heartedness that had been going on previously.

Y/n grabbed one of the spare brooms that had been provided by the Order. In all honesty, she was actually a fairly decent flyer, thanks to her friendship with Charlie. He had always encouraged his friends to friendly Quidditch matches during their schooling years. Though she was never good enough to play for the Hufflepuff team.

The ride to Harry’s went without any problem, though the ever paranoid Moody made them change course more times than necessary. Y/n rode close to Tonks who seemed to be in her element. 

As they touched down in a dark spot where no muggles could see, they made a dash to the Dursleys home. With a quick swish of Alastors wand, the door opened with a creak. It was dark in the house and Harry was nowhere to be seen. Then she remembered that the Dursleys often locked Harry in his room. He’d mentioned it to her on one of his late night visits to the library.

“He’ll be locked in his room,” Y/n muttered. “That’s upstairs.”

The group moved slowly and cautiously through the house and seemed to be doing well, until Y/n heard Tonks trip on one of the dining chairs. Both she and the chair landed with a crash on the ground.

“Ouch!” Tonks groaned, rubbing her knee.

Y/n did her absolute best not to burst out laughing. She’d certainly missed Tonks’s clumsiness. Y/n offered her friend a hand and pulled her up.

“That was embarrassing,” Tonks whispered. In the moonlight Y/n could see that her friends face had turned a shade of pink. In front of them, Alastor turned and shushed them. Both girls held back a fit of giggles, though that only made things funnier.

“Separate you two,” Alastor ordered. Y/n moved back to where Remus was. Being next to him would certainly keep her straight faced.

A few times Y/n and Remus bumped shoulders as they navigated towards the staircase with the rest of the group. The heat rose in her cheeks when he mumbled an apology to her. It was a tight squeeze with the others also joining them. Those who hadn’t yet met Harry were obviously eager to catch a glimpse of the ‘boy who lived.’ Remus and Y/n hung towards the back. 

From where she was standing, Y/n could see a room with a lock on the outside of the door. It had to be Harry’s. Alastor flicked his wand and the lock clicked. The door swung open and soon Harry’s head popped into the hallway.

“Lower your wand, boy!” Alastor ordered.

“Professor Moody?” Harry asked.

“I don't know so much about ‘Professor’,” Moody replied. “Never got round to much teaching, did I?  
Get down here, we want to see you properly.”

Beside her, Y/n felt Remus shift. “It's all right, Harry. We've come to take you away.”

“Professor Lupin? Is that you?”

Y/n could hear in Harry’s voice just how excited he was to have Remus back in his life. The two had become so close in the year that Remus had taught at Hogwarts.

Tonks illuminated the room and soon everyone was able to catch a glimpse of Harry clearly. His eyes widened when he saw Y/n with the group. She watched him glance between herself and Remus with a hint of curiosity. The last time he had seen Y/n anywhere near Remus was just after they had broken up. She had been a mess. 

As the group outwardly discussed who Harry resembled, Y/n’s thoughts drifted to her own muggle home that she had grown up in. She hadn’t been there since before graduating Hogwarts. Y/n had asked her mother to send anything she didn’t already have for her to Tomes and Scrolls. The two had never been close. Her mother had always considered her a burden. Y/n never knew who her father was.   
Y/n never gave much thought about her upbringing until she found herself in a heavily populated muggle location. Memories of her mother began pouring in and Y/n couldn’t help but wonder, did her mother think of her? 

It wasn’t until the group started dispersing around her that she zoned back into the conversation. Remus was explaining to Harry that they weren’t taking him to the Burrow. Tonks was complaining about Remus calling her Nymphadora. Alastor was pulling out his magical eye and placing it into a cup of water. Even though it was fake, Y/n still felt as though she would be sick. 

“How're we getting, wherever we're going?” Harry asked the group.

“Brooms, it’s the only way,” Remus began. “You're too young to Apparate, they'll be watching the Floo Network and it's more than our life's worth to set up an unauthorised Portkey.”

“Remus says you're a good flier,” Kingsley said while eyeing Harry.

“He's excellent,” Remus answered for him. “Anyway, you'd better go and get packed, Harry, we want to be ready to go when the signal comes.”

“I'll come and help you,” Tonks excitedly offered. “Wanna come Y/n?”

Y/n began following the two up the stairs when Remus stopped her. 

“Would you help me write a letter to the Dursleys?”

She looked back at Harry and Tonks who were still climbing the stairs. The two seemed to be getting along just fine. Y/n turned back to Remus and nodded. They headed into the kitchen where Y/n found a pad and pen. She tried to hand them to him, but he held up his hands.

“You write it…your handwriting is much nicer than mine,” Remus insisted.

“Fine, but you have to tell me what to write.”

When Harry and Tonks traipsed down the stairs with his trunk and Hedwig’s cage in tow, Y/n and Remus were just finishing the letter. Immediately Y/n could tell Tonks had changed her hair colour.

“Cute hair!” Y/n smiled. 

“Thanks! I wasn’t feeling violet anymore.”

“Girls! I am beginning to think that putting you two on the same mission is a mistake!” Alastor was staring at the two in disbelief. “Now, come here boy…I need to disillusion you.”

After Alastor had finished with charming Harry, it was time to move. The boy was blending into his surrounds which made it much safer to travel. The fewer risks they took, the better. When the entire group stepped outside and onto the Dursleys lawn, Y/n couldn’t help but take in just how immaculate the garden actually was. No wonder they had fallen for Tonks’s invitation.

Alastor began barking orders at the group. “We don't break ranks for anything, got me? If one of us is killed…”

“Is that likely?” Harry asked. He was beginning to look rather nervous. Y/n placed an arm around his shoulder. 

“Everything will be okay,” she whispered. “Look how many people volunteered to make sure you got to Headquarters safely.”

“Headquarters?” he asked. “What are you –”

Harry’s question was cut short by the sound of Tonks and Alastor arguing. She believed Alastor was being too intense, he believed she wasn’t taking it seriously enough. Finally, Kingsley cut in. “No one’s going to die.”

Y/n could see Harry’s tension leave when Kingsley spoke. To be honest, she felt the same way. His deep, soothing voice was like an instant Xanax.

Remus directed the group to mount up as soon as they received the first signal. Above them a burst of red sparks shot through the night sky. Y/n mounted her broom. When the second lot of sparks, this time green, flared into the sky above, they took off. It felt cooler on the way back then it did when they had been travelling to Harry’s. 

Y/n listened to those around her and watched Remus and Alastor carefully. In typical Alastor fashion, they changed course many times. Y/n’s hands were beginning to cramp from the cool air. Even with her gloves on, she was struggling. 

Towards the end of the trip, Alastor suggested doubling back, but thankfully Tonks protested. Soon, they were descending. Y/n, Harry and Tonks stuck together as they bee-lined for a patch of lights that looked like a bunch of luminescent beetles.

Moody held a small contraption in his hand and opened it up. Soon all the lights in the street went dark. “Borrowed it from Dumbledore,” he explained. “That'll take care of any Muggles looking out of the window, see? Now come on, quick.”

“Y/n, could you give me a hand with Harry’s trunk?” Tonks asked. “My hands are FROZEN.” She shot a glare in the direction of Alastor. Y/n couldn’t help but chuckle. She could definitely see why Tonks got on so well with him. They bickered, but Y/n could tell they both enjoyed the banter.

“You go ahead with the others, Tonks,” Y/n offered. “Start getting warm, I can handle this.”

“You sure?”

“Sure am!”

Tonks bounded towards Harry excitedly. Y/n could see that Alastor had just handed Harry a familiar looking piece of parchment, very similar to the one she had received from Albus. Y/n decided against enchanting the trunk to float along beside her, just in case a muggle saw. She began lugging it and soon regretted allowing Tonks to walk ahead.

‘Thankfully it’s not a long walk,’ she thought to herself. Suddenly the heaviness grew a little lighter. Y/n looked to her side and saw that Remus had grabbed the other handle. She glanced towards her hand and saw how close his was. The butterflies in her stomach returned. 

“Thank you,” Y/n smiled, which Remus returned. When they joined with the others, Harry was obviously as confused as Y/n had been, the day she first visited Grimmauld Place.

“Think about what you’ve just memorised,” Remus said beside Y/n.

Like the first day, number 12 finally revealed itself to Harry. Remus grabbed his wand out of his breast pocket with his spare hand and tapped the door. Slowly it creaked open. He ushered Harry inside but warned him not to stray far. Y/n knew why. It wouldn’t be much of a reunion if Walburga Black was shouting profanities at them.

Suddenly Molly appeared from around the corner. In typical Molly fashion, she pulled Harry in for a hug. She was whispering to him. Y/n only caught a small amount, but it of course had something to do with feeding him. Y/n suppressed a chuckle remembering the stories Charlie had told her previously.

Suddenly Mollys attention turned to the group who had arrived with Harry, Y/n included. “He’s just arrived, the meetings started.” Y/n had absolutely no idea about who she was talking of, but decided to go with it. She looked at Remus and gestured to drop the trunk. He nodded in agreement. They placed the trunk by the stairs and began following the others down the hall. 

Y/n and Remus were the last to enter the room and unfortunately this did not go unnoticed. Molly shot the pair a curious look while a few others whispered. Thankfully Tonks had saved Y/n a seat next to her. She was grinning ear to ear and patting it enthusiastically. The man Molly had been talking about earlier, happened to be Severus, who Y/n had not seen for quite some time. 

Y/n smiled in his direction, though he was too busy glaring daggers at Remus to notice. “Does Snape fancy you?” Tonks whispered in Y/n’s ear.

“No! Why do you ask?” Y/n demanded.

“You should have seen the look on his face when you and Remus walked in together.”

Y/n rolled her eyes. “We’re friends Tonks…not that he’d ever admit it. Trust me, it’s purely platonic. Besides, he pulled that face for the entire year he and Remus worked together. He’s not a fan.”

Severus glanced at Y/n as she was whispering in Tonks’s ear. She gave him a little wave and he nodded his head briefly. That was the equivalent of a hug in Severus’s books.

Everyone had a chance to go over the latest, including the evening’s trip to pick up Harry. Severus had a few things to say, mainly that the Ministry wasn’t happy with Albus’s plea for them to listen about Voldemort’s return. Voldemort and his followers were laying low of course, making it difficult to prove anything. He warned that the schooling year could be different with the Ministry watching.

Molly popped in and out of the meeting to check on the food that was being prepared. Y/n could smell the small feast that she was making. Her mouth began to water. 

After the meeting finished, Y/n exchanged pleasantries with the new witches and wizards she met and decided to quickly catch up with Severus. He was on his way out of course. He would never stay for dinner so long as Remus and Sirius were around. Y/n also didn’t think he was the type of Professor who enjoyed seeing his students on his holidays.

“Severus!” she called after him and he paused. At the same time, Molly began calling to the children for them to come down. The staircase sounded like a small stampede of animals was approaching. Harry was one of the first down. He and Severus exchanged a look of disdain which made Y/n shake her head in frustration. “Let’s chat outside.”

Both Severus and Y/n stood on the doorstep watching the others disappear via their preferred travelling method. Finally when they were alone, Y/n spoke. “How have your holidays been?” she asked, expecting to have some kind of sarcastic response.

Surprisingly, he answered sincerely. “They’ve been…interesting to say the least. But that’s not my concern…” He looked at her with worry in his eyes. “How are you? Since Diggory?”

“I still have nightmares every so often.”

“I could brew you some sleeping draught?”

“That’s kind of you Severus, but I don’t want to depend on a potion to help me sleep through the night. This is something I’m just going to have to accept. My life isn’t what it once was.”

“I still believe you should keep some handy, just in case.”

“I’ll think about it,” Y/n smiled.

The door behind them opened and suddenly Remus appeared. “Sorry to interrupt,” he said weakly. “We’re about to lock up…Y/n?”

If Y/n had a knife, she would have been able to cut the tension. Snape looked ropeable at the intrusion.

“Oh, sure…will you stay, Severus?”

“I have things to do…” he replied stiffly, never taking his eyes off Remus.

“I look forward to seeing you back at school,” Y/n smiled.

Severus rolled his eyes.

Y/n watched as Severus disapparated out of sight, then turned to walk back inside. 

“Since when are you and Severus so close?” Remus asked, locking the door behind them.

“He and I always got along relatively well. But I suppose last year was when we bonded a little more.”

Remus didn’t say anything as they headed towards the delicious smell. Y/n felt frustrated. Why was her and Severus’s friendship such a big deal? He was working for the Order. Dumbledore trusted him enough to let him join for goodness sake!

“Is my friendship with Severus a problem?” Y/n was feeling defensive.

“On the contrary! I think it would do him some good spending time with you.”

“Who is spending time with Y/n?” Sirius bellowed, throwing an arm around her shoulder. He was clearly on cloud nine having Harry back.

“No one,” Y/n quickly replied. She was not going to get into this with Sirius.

“Remus? Who are you talking about?”

“Sev-”

Y/n placed a hand over Remus’s mouth. “If you know what’s good for you, you won’t finish that sentence.”

Remus complied, but unfortunately it was enough for Sirius to deduce who they had been talking about. The three sat around the table.

“You’re friends with Snivellus?”

“It’s not a big deal, Sirius! Drop it.”

The table had gone quiet and Y/n could feel everyone’s eyes on them. ‘Please’, she mouthed.

“Fine, but we’ll be talking about this later.”

Y/n felt like a child being reprimanded. “No worries, father,” she sneered. Sirius hadn’t quite caught what Y/n said, but Tonks certainly had. She began cackling. Y/n thumped her leg under the table when Sirius looked over. Tonks immediately stopped and sat up straight. Both were in his bad books now.

Thankfully all attention on Y/n vanished when Fred and George began infuriating Molly. The two had recently come of age, which meant they were now allowed to use magic outside of Hogwarts. Y/n remembered when she had finally been able to do that. She’d been so eager to finally show her mum the things she’d learned at Hogwarts, but unfortunately it only caused more of a strain on their relationship. Nothing killed the vibe more than being called a freak by her mother.

Of course the twins using magic ended in a miniature disaster. Molly had yelled at them when the butterbeer they had enchanted spilled, causing a mess. Things took a turn when Molly began comparing Fred and George to their older siblings. Y/n felt uncomfortable the second she mentioned Charlies name, however everyone else went silent when Percy was brought up. What had happened with Percy? Y/n would have to ask Tonks later.

Y/n sat in silence taking in each of the conversations as she ate. The food of course was delicious. She hadn’t had Molly’s stew in months. Molly and Sirius seemed to be bickering about cleaning. Sirius had made it abundantly clear earlier in the evening that he was extremely fed up with being trapped inside the house. But it was far too dangerous for him to leave, even in his Animagus form. Voldemort and his followers would know of it now…thanks to Wormtail.

Tonks was busy entertaining Ginny and Hermione with her amazing metamorphagus skills. In between each bite of food, she was changing the appearance of her nose. Y/n smiled and laughed along, remembering all the times she had done the same at Hogwarts. The two girls had so much fun in school. Y/n’s small group of friends had somehow always managed to find trouble…similar to Harry, Ron and Hermione.

There were far too many conversations going at once for Y/n to focus on, so she began folding her napkin into little designs she had learned as a child. She figured if she didn’t bring any attention to herself, no one would ask uncomfortable questions about Severus or her trip to Romania.

After dessert, the group had certainly grown more subdue. Everyone appeared to be in a food coma and ready to sleep off the small feast Molly had prepared. Y/n stood to retire to the room she and Tonks would be sharing when Sirius spoke. “You know, I'm surprised at you. I thought the first thing you'd do when you got here would be to start asking questions about Voldemort.” Sirius was looking at Harry with a slight grin on his face. He knew this would cause trouble…

Y/n’s eyes widened. The once peaceful room was now full of tension. “Merlin,” she whispered under her breath. Molly looked like she was ready to whack Sirius over the head with the dessert tray she was holding.

In the minutes that ensued, Harry, Molly, Sirius, Fred and George began shouting back and forth. Harry did want to know, but explained that Hermione and Ron told him they weren’t allowed in the Order. Molly insisted they were too young. Sirius tried explaining that Harry had every right to know what had been happening, which infuriated Fred and George, who had been eager to learn about the Order for weeks.

It wasn’t until Arthur and Remus stepped in, that the group got anywhere. Y/n desperately wanted to leave, but being a member, she decided it was wise for her to stay. Maybe she would learn a few extra things as well. 

“Personally, I think it better that Harry gets the facts - not all the facts, Molly, but the general picture - from us, rather than a garbled version from others.”

Once again Sirius and Molly began arguing. Y/n stared at the two in shock. This had obviously been a long time coming. They were both getting heated. Molly cared about Harry like a son, Sirius did too. Though both had different ideas of what Harry should and shouldn’t be privy too.

Sirius began rising out of his chair so Y/n moved towards him. She touched his arm gently and he turned abruptly and pulled away. When he realised it was Y/n, he relaxed and let himself be comforted. Molly shot Y/n a look of disappointment and Y/n wished she could tell her that she wasn’t taking sides. She just really didn’t want Sirius to do or say something he would later regret.

“Molly, you're not the only person at this table who cares about Harry,” Lupin chided.  
“Sirius, sit down.”

Y/n took the seat beside Sirius and gave him a reassuring look. He looked ropeable still, though she could tell he appreciated her attention.

Y/n couldn’t control herself and before she knew it, she was speaking. Everyone turned to her shocked. She hadn't said anything in a while. “Personally, I think Harry is old enough to decide what he wants…he’s not an infant anymore.”

She could feel everyone’s gaze on her. Molly was burning a hole in the back of her head. “I’m just saying…has anyone even bothered to ask Harry?”

“I want to know what's been going on,” Harry answered.

“Very well,” Molly croaked. She ordered the other kids out of the kitchen. Of course, this was met with a lot of protest. Despite her greatest efforts, Molly relented and let Fred and George stay. They were after all legally adults now. Harry insisted he would just tell Ron and Hermione everything, so in the end, Ginny was the only one forced upstairs.

For the remainder of the evening, Y/n fought the urge to fall asleep in the chair she was sitting in. She knew she needed to be more attentive, but it had been a massively long day. In between moments of resting her eyes she caught a few words, though it was nothing she hadn’t already been made aware of. Finally she let her tired eyes win. 

Beside her, Sirius carefully pulled Y/n’s chair closer to his. Her head had been lolling back and forth uncomfortably. He offered an arm for her to lean against and her sleeping self, accepted it happily. He gazed at his sleeping friend and smiled. Why couldn’t Remus just accept the fact that he still had feelings for her? Y/n was beautiful, kind and had so many other qualities Remus fancied.

Remus watched his best friend and his former partner with a hint of jealousy. Not at their relationship. No, that was purely platonic. He was jealous that Sirius could touch her and no one would bat an eyelid. If he had done the same thing, all eyes would have been on them. He desperately longed for her touch. He’d been craving it for over a year now, but he needed to stick to his guns. He was all wrong for her. How could she ever want to be with him?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have a beautiful week. xx


	5. Holidays

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y/n and Charlie have a long overdue conversation and Y/n joins Molly on a trip to Diagon Alley.

The next morning Y/n awoke in the bed beside Tonks. She had absolutely no recollection of how she had gotten there, but was grateful they didn’t let her sleep in the dining chair all night. Her body would have been so stiff and sore.

Tonks was still fast asleep and snoring her head off. Y/n had forgotten how much her friend snored. She recalled the many times that she had enchanted Tonks’s four poster in their dorm to contain her loud sleeping habits.

Y/n looked out the window and noticed that it was a rather gloomy day. The rain was coming down quite hard. She carefully rolled over Tonks and walked towards the door. The clock ticking on the wall showed that it was still quite early…not even 6. She’d definitely beat most of the occupants to a shower.

Since Y/n had last stayed the night, the bathroom was considerably more appealing. Molly and the kids had obviously tackled it first when they arrived. It was halfway through her shower though, that she realised she had forgotten her bag with her spare change of clothes and toiletries. She didn’t have her wand handy either.

“Shit!” she groaned as she wrapped a towel around her chest securely. She had to choose one of two options. Wait until someone needed to use the bathroom and get them to pass her bag through, or dash down the hall in her towel. Deciding that the latter was far too risky, especially with a bunch of school students in the house, she decided to wait. 

It wasn’t long until she heard a little knock on the door and an all too familiar voice. “Will you be long?” the voice asked. It was Remus. Of course he was awake. Of course it had to be him. 

“Remus, I left my bag in the room. Would you mind getting it for me so I can get changed?”

‘Uhhh…”

“Tonks is fast asleep and will sleep through about anything. Please?”

“I’ll be back shortly.”

A few moments later, he knocked on the door lightly and Y/n opened it enough that he would be able to slip the bag through. “Thanks,” she mumbled.

Y/n quickly changed into a new pair of jeans and a light sweater. It may be summer, but the rain would no doubt have cooled things down. She untied her messy hair and brushed through it, then headed out the door where Remus was leaning against the wall, patiently awaiting his turn.

He was wearing a pair of long, tattered pyjama bottoms and a t-shirt. Y/n tried her best not to stare at his arms. They’d always been deceptively larger when he wasn’t wearing his usual sweater-cardigan combo. Much like Charlie, Remus was covered in scars, though his were unintentionally self-inflicted. It looked as though he had some new ones. Y/n had to fight the desperate urge to run her fingertips over them the way she used too.

“Bathrooms all yours,” she smiled, avoiding eye contact. 

“I didn’t mean to rush you,” he replied.

“I would have been out sooner, I just stupidly forgot my clothes. Thanks for saving me an awkward run down the hall in my towel.”

Remus chuckled, “I’m sure Sirius wouldn’t have minded.” 

“No, I don’t think he would have!” 

“You two have grown close…”

He said it so quietly she could barely hear him. They were alone in the hall, so she didn’t know why he was whispering.

“Sirius is an absolute fool,” Y/n laughed, “but a loveable one. He’s been a great friend.”

“Is that all it-”

Footsteps shuffled towards them slowly. Kreacher the house elf was moping by, muttering nasty things as he approached. Y/n wanted to say something but Remus stopped her. They stood in silence as he passed.

“You were saying, Remus?”

He shook his head, “no, don’t worry. It’s none of my business anyway.”

“Sirius and I are friends, Remus. That’s all it will ever be.”

“And what about Charlie?”

“Charlie and I…it’s complicated.”

“I see…”

“I better let you get ready for the day,” Y/n smiled. “I want to head back to Hogwarts.”

“You won’t stay for breakfast? Molly and the kids will be disappointed you’re leaving so early.”

‘Just Molly and the kids?’ thought Y/n as she stared deeply into his eyes. ‘Ugh! Why am I playing with fire?!’

“Nope, I better go…good seeing you again Remus.”

Y/n threw her bag over her shoulder and before she knew it, she was standing in the forest, just outside of the Hogwarts border. It was wrong to leave without waiting to say goodbye to everyone else, but for her own sanity, it’s what she needed to do. Seeing Remus so often really wasn’t helping her with the whole ‘moving on’ thing. Especially when he asked questions about her relationships with both Sirius and Charlie. His interest in her personal life was beginning to give her false hope about his feelings for her.

Days passed and Y/n did not see or hear from anyone in the Order. Albus hadn’t been in his office when she returned from Grimmauld place and had not visited her in the days that followed. Y/n assumed that if she was needed, he would have left instructions or dropped in.

Of course, Charlie was an exception to the lack of communication. Almost every day she was receiving a letter from a new owl. Every letter pretty much said the same thing. ‘I’m sorry for the way I spoke to you. I had no right to be so jealous and act the way I did. I miss you. Please talk to me.’

Y/n decided that enough time had passed for her to reply. The anger which she felt initially had certainly simmered. It was time to talk to him. She began writing.

____________  
Hi Charlie,  
Thank you for your letters. I know how frustrating it must have been for you to not here back for so long, but I needed the space. I hope you could understand.  
Do you want to chat this Friday evening at 10pm your time via floo? I could call you.   
Y/n.   
____________  
Y/n chose the strongest looking owl in the Owlery to give the letter too. She wanted to ensure that Charlie would get it in time to reply back before the day she had suggested. In the meantime Y/n had plenty of time to think of what exactly she wanted to say to Charlie. A few things had been playing on her mind. The first being that neither she, nor Charlie would likely move for the other. He was committed to the Dragon Sanctuary and Y/n was committed to Hogwarts. They of course had undeniable chemistry but both had made it blatantly obvious that neither were looking for anything serious. 

The pang of guilt suddenly returned to her stomach. Had she been using Charlie this whole time? Had he been using her? A casual relationship had seemed so beneficial at the time, but now it was just making everything more complicated. Especially now that Remus was back in the picture.

Remus. He’d been the one to break things off with Y/n. He’d told her to move on…to settle down. He said that there was no future for them, that he was too dangerous, too old. He couldn’t give her a normal life. But the signals he’d been giving her lately told her otherwise. The looks she’d been receiving were starting to give her hope. She shook the thoughts of Remus out of her mind. “No,” she told herself, “he’s too stubborn.”

Feeling rather annoyed at herself for being so consumed in relationship drama, when the world as she knew it was in crisis, Y/n grabbed a book and dove onto her bed. It was time to escape reality for a while…

Charlie’s reply to her letter came a lot quicker than Y/n anticipated. He had obviously been keeping an eye on his mail. He normally never replied this fast. His response had been short and sweet. A simple ‘yes please’ followed by a single kiss.

All afternoon Y/n felt anxious about her upcoming chat with Charlie. By evening, she felt ill with worry. The food she had brought back to her room lay untouched. Rejected articles of clothing were in a pile on the end of her bed. What exactly does one wear on a floo chat? 

In the end, Y/n settled for a plain blue t-shirt and a pair of shorts. There was no point in getting too dressed up. Charlie wouldn’t be able to see the bottom of her anyway.

At 8pm her time, Y/n grabbed a handful of the floo powder and threw it into the fireplace. When the flames turned green and began flickering, Y/n positioned herself in a comfy spot and knelt forward. She had locked the door to both the library and her room, wanting to avoid anyone overhearing what she and Charlie were talking about.

“The Romanian Dragon Sanctuary,” she said clearly. Her head began to spin uncontrollably and she instantly felt ill. She’d travelled by floo before, but had never just sent her head. It was a very strange feeling. The second she saw Charlie, nervously playing with the hem of his shirt, she felt a little better. He was anxious too. 

“Hello you,” she smiled. 

His face lit up when he saw she had arrived. “Y/n! I’ve missed you! I’m so sorry-”

“Charlie, you’ve already apologised a million times. I think it’s my turn to apologise to you.”

“What on earth do you need to apologise to me about? It was my fault things went to shit!”

“I should have told you about the Order and seeing Remus again much sooner than I did. Plus, I shouldn’t have just left like that. I should have cooled off and we could have avoided all this awkwardness.”

Both Charlie and Y/n stared at each other, absorbing what each had to say. Truthfully, neither had behaved very maturely. 

“Where do we stand, Y/n?” Charlie asked solemnly.

“Charlie, I love you…”

“But, as a friend?”

“Yeah…”

Silence once again. This time, it was Y/n who broke it. “That’s not to say I don’t like you, Charlie. I do have feelings for you. But…”

“We’re both too stubborn to commit 100%?”

“Right…and I don’t want to make you choose between your career and me.” Deep down Y/n knew she wouldn’t win that battle. Ever since knowing Charlie, this had been his number one obsession and passion.

“And I guess with everything that’s going on lately, it would be one extra thing for us to be worried about…”

“So, we’re on the same page?” Y/n asked hopefully.

“Friends?” Charlie stated.

“Best friends!” she smiled.

Tears began rolling down Y/n’s face the longer she looked at Charlie. He really was one of the most wonderful people on the face of the earth. He got her and she totally got him. If only things had worked out differently.

They spoke for a while longer as Charlie desperately tried his best to take her mind off of feeling sad. He asked her questions about the Order and what they had been up too. She told him of Harry’s attack by the Dementors and his upcoming hearing. 

“Hey Y/n?” Charlie asked as the conversation was nearing its end. “Why haven’t we been doing this all along?”

“You mean chatting via floo?”

He nodded.

“I have no idea Charlie, but I think we need to start doing this from now on.”

Charlies famous grin crept on his face, “I agree! Don’t be a stranger, Y/n.”

“Never,” she replied.

“It’s getting quite late here,” Charlie yawned. “I think we should call it.”

The two exchanged goodnights and Y/n pulled herself back into her own room. It felt as though an instant weight had been lifted from her shoulders. One that had been bearing on her for quite some time. 

She didn’t regret her romantic time with Charlie one bit. In fact, she was grateful for it. He had shown her kindness when she needed it the most. He had been craving affection for a while and she had been the one he wanted. It had been a year of uncertainty for the two and now they were both able to stress less. Sleep came easy that night.

The following day, Y/n awoke and got ready. Harry’s hearing was happening and she wanted to be at Grimmauld Place early to wish him luck. Unable to apparate out of Hogwarts, Y/n travelled by floo. It had become her number one travel method of late.

Arriving at Grimmauld Place, Y/n could hear chattering in the kitchen. On her way in, Y/n couldn’t help but notice how nice the place was looking…though nice was a bit of an overstatement. Cleaner was the word she was looking for. Molly and the kids had obviously been working super hard to get the place looking more welcoming. 

“Y/n!” Tonks managed through a yawn when she walked through the door. “You’re here early!”

In the corner of her eye, Y/n could see Sirius nudging Remus. Molly and Arthur smiled warmly at her.

“I didn’t even think you had the ability to wake up this early,” Y/n laughed as she playfully pushed her friend. “Blonde hair today? I like it.”

Tonks held her coffee mug towards Y/n and gestured her appreciation to the compliment. “Cheers,” she yawned again.

“So where’s Harry? I came to wish him good luck.” 

“Present,” a small voice came from the door behind her. 

Y/n rushed towards her young friend and gave him a big hug. “You’ve got this,” she encouraged.

Harry returned the hug, muttered a quick “thanks” and joined the others by the table. He was obviously anxious about the upcoming hearing. Molly immediately began fussing over feeding him breakfast. 

Not long after Harry and Arthur left. Arthur had been eager to arrive early as they were travelling the ‘muggle’ way. Y/n grinned at Arthur’s enthusiasm for all things muggle. She needed to bring a few things from her childhood bedroom over to show Arthur one day. He would be fascinated with them for sure.

When the others awoke, Y/n busied herself by helping them clean, though she purposely avoided Fred, George and Molly. They seemed the most nosey about her and Charlie. 

To distract himself from Harry’s hearing, Sirius tried entertaining himself by setting up Y/n and Remus to be in the same room whenever possible. He’d start a conversation with the two, then excuse himself halfway through, then never return. After a while the two caught on to his plan and avoided him entirely. 

When Harry and Arthur arrived back home everyone was anxious to hear what had happened. Harry was quick to explain that he had been acquitted. Y/n sighed a breath of relief and wrapped him into a hug.

“Hogwarts wouldn’t have been the same without you,” she grinned at the boy. 

Fred and George made a scoffing sound like they were offended. “We’re not enough?” George asked as he held Fred who was sobbing dramatically.

Y/n pushed the two boys, “oh shush you two, you know what I meant.”

Soon Fred, George and Ginny began dancing about the kitchen chanting, “He got off” repeatedly. Arthur was not impressed as he was trying to relay something to Sirius.

“Lucius was at the Ministry…”

“What?!” Sirius and Y/n sputtered at the same time.

“Be quiet, you three!" Arthur hissed at his children. "Yes, we saw him talking to Fudge on level nine, then they went up to Fudges office together. Dumbledore ought to know.”

Sirius and Y/n naturally agreed and it was decided that Y/n would tell him when she returned to Hogwarts after supper.

On the final day before the start of term, Y/n arrived at Grimmauld place at Albus’s suggestion. She hadn’t seen him in person, but he had neatly written a little note and placed it on her door. This was starting to become a habit for him now.

When Y/n arrived there was excitement in the air, though Harry certainly didn’t seem pleased. Molly was ecstatic and rushed forward to show her that Ron was a Prefect. Hermione too. Y/n now realised the reason Harry seemed aloof.

“Y/n dear! I was just about to head into Diagon Alley to grab the children’s school things. Care to join?”

Ron’s face lit up at the suggestion. He wandered over to where Y/n was standing and whispered, “Perhaps you could show mum a decent broom that she could get for me?”

Y/n looked at Molly who was busy checking over the lists, then back to Ron who was silently pleading. Y/n rolled her eyes and faced Molly. “Sure, I reckon it will be a bit of fun.”

“Oh fabulous dear! How would you prefer to travel? Floo or Apparation?”

“Let’s Apparate,” Y/n suggested. She’d had her fair share of Floo travel lately and being covered in soot was the last thing she wanted.

Molly and Y/n arrived in front of Gringotts a few seconds later. “You want to join me inside? Or would you prefer to wait out here?”

“I actually wouldn’t mind getting an ice-cream from Florean’s…would you like one?”

Molly smiled at Y/n and nodded her head eagerly. “If he has some pistachio, I would love a scoop.”

“Coming right up, I’ll meet you out the front of Gringotts!”

Y/n headed into the parlour and breathed in the delicious smell of waffle cone and sugary treats. 

“Merlin! I haven’t seen you here in quite some time!” 

Y/n faced the counter and offered a shy wave at the owner. “It certainly has been a while,” she agreed.

“So what can I get for you?”

“Two scoops of pistachio in a cup and two scoops of butterscotch cream please.”

After Florean had levitated the ice-cream towards Y/n, she reached for her bag but was soon tutted.

“On the house!” the older man smiled.

“You don’t have to do that!” 

“Nonsense! It’s a pleasure.”

Y/n reluctantly took the two serves of ice-cream from where they were still floating and paused. On the counter was a tips jar. When Florean wasn’t looking, she quickly grabbed a few galleons and placed them gently in the jar. 

Molly was waiting out the front by the time Y/n returned. “Oh you didn’t need to get me two scoops!” Molly exclaimed.   
“We definitely needed two scoops,” Y/n laughed as she handed the cup over.

Molly and Y/n strolled through Diagon Alley as they ate their ice-creams, occasionally popping into a store that contained an item off the list that they needed. 

“Anything else we need?” Y/n queried. It was getting late. The two woman had been shopping for hours.

“Let’s see…we got the books, stationary, potion ingredients…there was something else I needed…”

“Ron’s new broom,” Y/n reminded. 

“Merlin! How could I forget that?” Molly and Y/n rushed towards the broom store.“Honestly, thank goodness you’re here! I would have-”

Molly was knocked aside by a couple leaving the store. Neither party turned to apologise, which infuriated Y/n.

“Are you okay?” she asked as Molly rubbed her arm.

“I’ll be fine dear, let’s buy this broom and get home.”

“You go in…he wanted a Cleansweep,” Y/n called from over her shoulder.

Y/n raced after the people who exited the store with determination. ‘Rude jerks,’ she thought to herself. Finally she saw them in the crowd.

“Hey!” she called. “You two!”

The two turned and her stomach lurched. Draco Malfoy and his mother were staring straight at her. “What do you want?” Draco spat.

“You ran into my friend and you owe her an apology!”

Draco laughed. His mother seemed completely disinterested.

“Laugh all you want now, Draco. Come September 1st, if you pull shit like that at school, you’re going to be enjoying plenty of detentions.”

Finally Draco’s mother spoke. “Are you, threatening my son?” She said with acid.

“Merely warning,” Y/n corrected. “If he thinks he can get away with this type of behaviour at Hogwarts, he’s sorely mistaken.”

Draco unlinked from his mother’s arm and sauntered towards Y/n. She straightened her back and looked him in the eye. He laughed again. “You really think you’re intimidating? How pathetic.”

Y/n itched to reach her wand and show the blonde boy just how intimidating she could be, but that was far too dangerous. Too many witnesses. She’d definitely lose her job.

Y/n turned her attention to his mother once more. “I’m more disappointed with you.”

“Oh?”

“You let your son treat people this way? It’s disgraceful.”

The woman merely rolled her eyes. “Draco, let’s leave these two poor excuses for witches and continue with our shopping.” Y/n turned to see that Molly was now standing behind her. She looked embarrassed.

Before re-joining his mother, Draco leaned forward and sneered into Y/n’s ear, “Tell Potter, Weasley and the Mudblood to stay on their best behaviour this year...I’m a prefect you see...” He shot her a smug look then linked arms again with his mother.

Y/n watched in anger as they walked away. “Assho-”

“Y/n! Do not finish the end of that word!”

“What? It’s true! They are horrible people.”

Molly grabbed Y/n’s arm and directed her away from the Malfoys. It was probably for the best anyway. “I don’t know why you had to chase after them,” Molly hissed. “They’re dangerous people.”

“They were rude to you! Of course I was going to say something!”

Molly's face softened, “you’re a sweet girl, Y/n. Charlie is lucky to have you.”

Y/n’s face turned a shade of pink. They had gone the whole day without talking about Charlie. Why now?!

“Molly…Charlie and I aren’t together…”

Molly paused and faced her, “but you visited Romania…”

“We ended things,” Y/n whispered. “Not that we were ever officially together.”

Y/n expected Molly to freak out and cause a scene, but instead she did quite the opposite. “Kids these days! I’ll never understand.”

“You’re not mad?”

“I’m a little disappointed…but you’re both so young. There’s still plenty of time to make things work. Now, let’s get home.”

The two women arrived home moments later. Y/n was still trying to process Molly’s reaction to the news about Y/n and Charlie ending their little arrangement. Molly hurried upstairs to give Ron his new broom and Y/n dropped the kids’ books off to their respective owners. 

By the time Y/n came back downstairs, Molly had already set up a banner that read ‘Congratulations Ron and Hermione – New Prefects.’

“We’re having a party!” Molly exclaimed. “Go freshen up dear, I’ve got everything handled.”

Y/n hurried upstairs for a change of clothes. She’d purchased a few new items for school, but she was sure one of the dresses was suitable for now. Tonks helped Y/n sort through the many bags Y/n had brought back with her and finally they found the dress. It was pale blue, lay just above her knees and was embroidered with wildflowers. 

“Bloody hell Y/n! Who are you trying to impress?” Tonks sniggered when Y/n gave her permission to look.

“No one!” Y/n insisted, throwing a pillow at her friend. “I just thought it was pretty…”

“And you look like a goddess in it! Merlin! Remus is going to drool when he sees you!”

“Shh! someone will hear you!”

Tonks rolled her eyes and opened the door. “Come on! I’m starving!”

Y/n reluctantly followed Tonks down the stairs, almost turning back a few times to change into her old clothes.  
Tonks entered the dining room first and Y/n followed behind trying to blend in. She tried her best not to make eye contact with Remus or Sirius. Just once, Y/n wanted a night without any awkward encounters. Tonks and Y/n sat together at the end of the table with Ginny and Hermione. She felt safest down that end. 

“Remus, Alastor and I are taking the kids to Kings Cross tomorrow, are you going to join?” Tonks asked Y/n while stuffing another piece of pudding in her mouth.

“You’re as bad as Ron, Tonks! Swallow first, questions second.” Y/n waited for Tonks to finish what was in her mouth.

“Are you coming with us tomorrow?” Tonks asked after finally swallowing.

“I’m heading back to Hogwarts tonight, actually. I have to prep the library.” 

Molly chimed in, “it won’t be the same without you hanging around here,” she smiled.

“I’ll miss you guys, but we can write…and I’m sure there’ll be meetings I will need to attend.”

“I actually have a feeling communicating is going to be an issue this year…given the Ministry…” Kingsley announced. “But I’ll let Albus explain everything to you.”

After congratulating Ron and Hermione one last time and giving Tonks a huge hug, Y/n grabbed her jacket and headed towards the fire place. Though something stopped her. She could hear Harry and Molly in the drawing room and both sounded distressed.

Y/n peaked her head through the door and gasped in horror. Before her, lay the dead body of Percy Weasley. Her first instinct was to grab Molly and Harry and run, but something peculiar happened. The body disappeared and soon turned into Harry. Molly was sobbing and Harry was trying his best to comfort her. “Riddikulus!” Molly whimpered.

Y/n felt her body grow cold as she remembered her previous two encounters with the horrible beings. “Molly! Let’s get out of here and let someone else-”

At that moment, Remus burst through the door. He touched Y/n’s arm softly, silently asking if she was okay. She gestured towards the dead body of Harry. Sirius and Alastor arrived a few moments later. Before they could do anything, Remus had effectively removed it.

Y/n turned to Sirius who was wearing a pained look. He had seen the vision of dead Harry and he was visibly shaken. She grabbed Sirius’s hand and gave it a squeeze. He smiled weakly at her and returned a squeeze.

Through sobs, Molly began sharing her fears and concerns. Y/n let go of Sirius and pulled Molly into her. After some reassuring words from both Sirius and Remus, Molly seemed calm enough that Y/n could travel back to Hogwarts.

“I’ll see you tomorrow Harry,” Y/n smiled. “Safe travels,” Y/n nodded to the others who followed her to the fire place.

“Are you sure you won’t stay?” Molly asked.

“Thanks Molly, but there’s nowhere for me to sleep here.”

Sirius’s smug face lit up as he glanced at Remus and nudged him. “She could sleep with you,” Y/n heard him whisper.

“On second thought!” Molly announced. “It probably is better you get back tonight. Have a good rest and be ready for the start of term!” She turned towards Sirius and scowled.

As Y/n stood in the fireplace and dropped her powder, she took one last glance at the group. Sirius had rolled his eyes at Molly and the pair were bickering. Remus looked mortified. 

Gut instinct told Y/n that trouble would no doubt find her again this school year. The pit in her stomach grew just thinking about it.


	6. Dolores

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The start of term often brings with it, a new Defense against the Dark Arts Professor...

It was late when Y/n returned to her room. Too late to see Albus anyway. The day had been long and filled with a mixture of emotions that she was still trying to grasp. Tomorrow she would be seeing Draco Malfoy again and after their confrontation, she was feeling rather anxious about it. By now his father, Lucius would have heard about the encounter. Would he make things difficult for her this year? He was after all, on the Board of Governors for Hogwarts. Y/n groaned in frustration for putting her foot in it again with the man. They’d already exchanged words at the Quidditch World Cup the year before.

She still felt relief though having finally had the long awaited conversation with Charlie. That was certainly one less thing to stress about. Unfortunately Molly still seemed hell-bent on the two of them working things out. That would certainly make working with Remus interesting. Molly seemed to be struggling with the idea of them growing close. Being back at Hogwarts would make that easier though. Y/n wouldn’t be seeing the other Order members as often now that she was back at school full-time.

The next morning the bells sounded. It had been a while since Y/n had heard them. “Hello September 1st,” she yawned through a stretch. The students weren’t due to arrive until the evening, so instead of getting dressed straight away, Y/n decided to stay in her pyjamas. She had neglected the Library these holidays, having been at Grimmauld Place and in town for a majority of them. 

It was mid-morning when a knock on the door distracted her from processing the new books she had ordered. Y/n looked down and instantly regretted not getting changed out of her pyjamas. “Come in,” she called.

The doors to the library opened. Albus Dumbledore was standing in the doorway looking immaculately dressed. Y/n cursed under her breath. He always looked brilliant. “Good morning, Miss L/n. I’m sorry to interrupt you while you work…there is someone who –”

Behind Albus came a soft “hem-hem.” Confused Y/n attempted to see who was standing behind the tall Wizard. A short woman stepped out from behind him.

Y/n scratched her head in confusion, she’d never seen this woman before in her life. Though, for some reason, she instantly gave Y/n an uneasy feeling.

“Sorry Albus, if I had known you and a guest were coming, I would have dressed up…” 

“I was planning on introducing you later at the staff meeting, but Ms Umbridge was eager to be shown around the school.”

“Well, I’ve been busy cataloguing these new books, so I haven’t had a chance to give the library a good clean yet. That’s next on my list.” Y/n smiled at the woman apologetically. “Sorry about the mess.”

The woman who had been gazing around the room with a face filled with disgust suddenly turned to Y/n. A sickly sweet grin made its way onto her face. Y/n had to try her best to suppress the shiver that ran up her spine.

“I must say, given the fact that it’s the first day of term, I was expecting the library to be ready for students.”

“There’s still plenty of time,” Y/n said, matching the tone of the woman.

“You mentioned that you were going to be cleaning? Don’t you have house elves for that?” She turned to face Albus. But before he was able to reply, Y/n answered her question.

“The elves do help me from time to time when I ask, but they are busy in the kitchens and I feel accomplished doing it myself.”

Albus smiled approvingly.

“Well then, I guess we better leave you to it,” she glanced around once more before her eyes landed on Y/n. “Looks like you have plenty more to do.”

Y/n watched as the woman walked off, her heels clicking along the stone floor. Albus glided towards Y/n and spoke softly. “The staff meeting today is at noon.”

“I’ll be there,” Y/n mumbled, glaring at the spot where the woman had been standing. “Who is that woman, by the way?”

“That, would be Dolores Umbridge. She works for the Ministry...”

“And why is she here?”

“She is our new Defence against the Dark Arts Professor.”

Y/n instantly felt ill. This horrible, judgemental toad of a woman was going to be working at Hogwarts?

“Well,” Y/n said looking up at Albus. “Let’s hope this one doesn’t try and kill me.”

Albus chuckled at her joke. A part of her was being serious though. Just one year of not almost dying would be nice.

Once Y/n had finished putting the new books in their places, she ran about mumbling cleaning charms to ensure the library was spotless. A part of her wanted to be stubborn and let the cobwebs hang from the ceiling just to spite Dolores, but she decided against it. She refused to give the Ministry any more reason to disapprove of Albus.

Once every surface was immaculately clean, Y/n hurried into her bathroom to start making herself look a little more decent. She didn’t care what Dolores thought of her, yet strangely felt the need to prove herself.

Y/n selected a pair of culottes and a light sweater to wear, then curled her hair and applied a small amount of makeup. She began walking towards the staffroom in the Great Hall. On the way, she found herself next to Sybill Trelawney who looked out of place. She didn’t come down from her room too often, so when she did, it always seemed strange.

“How are you Sybill?” Y/n asked as she neared the woman. Sybil jumped and clutched her heart. She was so dramatic.

“Hello dear, it’s been a while.”

“Indeed it has, how are you today?”

“Woeful really, my readings told me something disastrous would happen at this meeting. But Albus insisted everyone be there.” 

“I’d say Dolores is the disastrous thing,” Y/n mumbled under her breath. Sybil didn’t seem to be paying attention though.

When the two arrived, Sybill counted the number of people, before taking a seat by the window. She looked relieved. Y/n remembered the woman’s superstitious beliefs and chuckled to herself. As a student, Sybill had predicted the death of Y/n and her friends many times. It wasn’t a school year without it really.

As Y/n looked around the room for a place to sit, she noticed Hagrid was missing. ‘Strange,’ she thought. Hagrid, who lived at the school all year round, was usually here by now. Y/n looked towards Albus who had been observing her thoughtfully. She gave him an inquisitive glance and he winked subtly. ‘He must be on a mission for the Order’, she concluded. 

Once everyone had arrived and were seated, Albus arose from his position and addressed the staff.  
“Welcome back everyone. I trust that you all had a wonderful summer break and are feeling well rested and ready for term to begin. Today’s meeting will not be a long one as we only have a few topics to discuss.”

Y/n looked towards the seat beside Albus. Dolores Umbridge was sitting next to him, watching his every move like a hungry bird looking for a juicy worm. Y/n involuntarily shivered. Dolores noticed the movement and her eyes shot towards Y/n who quickly diverted her attention back towards the Headmaster. Y/n was too nervous to look back and see if she had been caught staring.

“We have two changes to our staffing this year.”

Y/n watched the others in the room stare at Dolores. Some with looks of curiosity, others with disdain. Minerva looked particularly apprehensive.

“Professor Grubbly Plank will be taking over Hagrid’s position as Professor of Care of Magical Creatures while he is absent from the school. Please ensure she feels as welcome as she did last time.”

The older woman nodded appreciatively at the few professors who kindly welcomed her back. Y/n smiled warmly. The woman was well-liked by staff and students at the school and as much as she would miss Hagrid, Y/n felt strangely happy that such a capable woman was taking over her friends role.

Y/n made a mental note to ask Albus about Hagrid later, though she wondered how much he would say, now that school was resuming and there were more ears that could potentially be listening in.

“As you may have already noticed,” Albus continued. “We have a new face joining us in here today. Some of you have already had the…pleasure of meeting our new Defence against the Dark Arts Professor, Dolores Umbridge, when we toured the school this morning.” 

Y/n shifted in her chair uncomfortably. The woman was wearing a sinister grin upon her face. Y/n couldn’t believe that this woman made her miss imposter Alastor! And that was saying something…

“Hem-hem.”

Y/n stared out the window so that no one would be able to see her eyes roll in frustration. That sound had to be one of the most infuriating noises she had ever heard.

“Thank you Albus, I look forward to teaching the students and to getting to know each and every one of you.”

When Y/n turned back, she noticed Dolores’s eyes on her. This time Y/n offered a tight smile that the woman returned. It was equally as fake as her own.

“I’m sure we will all have ample amounts of opportunities to get to know one another, but until then, let’s get ourselves prepared and ready for another year. See you this evening,” Albus concluded. Dolores looked upset that not more of a fuss had been made about her appointment at the school.

In typical Albus fashion, he left in a flash. Everyone followed suit, though Y/n lingered at the back of the crowd to walk out with Severus.

“Severus,” Y/n whispered, pulling his arm towards her. “Can we talk?” 

He nodded his head slowly, fixed his sleeve where Y/n had tugged, then gestured for her to follow him. Instead of guiding her towards his or her room, he brought her to a secluded spot by the lake. Neither said a word until he had stopped and turned to face her.

“I presumed you wanted to have a private conversation?”

“I did,” Y/n replied. “Though, could that not have happened in either of our rooms?”

“These days, one can never be too careful.”

“I assume you’re talking about our newest Professor?”

“Correct…”

“So you’re not a fan either?”

“Correct again.”

“This has got to be an attempt by the Ministry to spy on Albus. There’s no other reason for it. Until Albus started speaking about Voldemort’s return, they hadn’t cared so much about who was employed at the school.”

“That is the same conclusion I have made.”

“So…what do we do Severus?”

“I suggest…you stay on Dolores’s good side.”

“And how do you propose I do that? I can tell she already despises me. She didn’t exactly get the best first impression of me this morning.”

“I can assure you Y/n, she would have already made her mind up about you before ever having met you.”

Y/n remembered the articled Rita Skeeter wrote about her the previous year. “Is she an avid reader of the Daily Prophet?”

“She is an avid hater of half-breeds. In particular, werewolves…”

“Say no more...” Y/n scowled. “Any suggestions as to how I get on her good side?”

“I would suggest, if the topic ever arises, to admit you made a mistake in falling for him romantically.”

“Easier said than done,” Y/n replied sadly. “I’ll try to be as convincing as possible…”

After her conversation with Severus, Y/n headed back to her room to de-stress before the start of term feast. The Ministry was interfering with Hogwarts. Y/n realised now more than ever she needed to be on her best behaviour. She couldn’t let someone like Draco Malfoy irritate her anymore. She needed to be at the school to support Albus in any way she could. People needed to believe that Voldemort had returned. Otherwise it would be too late and more lives would be lost.

For the remainder of the day, Y/n wandered the empty corridors of the castle, taking in the last hours of silence before the students arrived. When the sky turned golden, she went back to her room to freshen up and dress.

With the students arriving back, Y/n began thinking of Cedric and everything he could have achieved this year. The Ministry were crazy not to believe Harry and Albus. How else could Cedric’s loss of life be explained?

Having spent time reflecting on her friendship with Cedric and the events of last year, Y/n got ready much slower than usual. Unfortunately this meant she was late to the feast. By the time she opened the doors and entered the Great Hall, the older students were already seated and were waiting for the sorting of the first years.

When Y/n walked down the aisle towards the teachers table, she could feel all eyes on her. She tried her best to act confident; like being late was her intention, but the second she saw Dolores Umbridge watching her like a hawk, her confidence disappeared. 

There was only one spot available when Y/n gazed at the teachers table and unfortunately it was beside the toadlike woman. Y/n remembered Severus’s suggestion and channelled her sweetest voice. “Sorry I’m late,” she whispered to the woman. “Peeves had played a prank in the library which I needed to fix.” Y/n felt bad lying about the poltergeist, but couldn’t think of a better explanation. If word got out about her lie, Peeves would no doubt pay her back by actually pranking her.

Dolores made a disapproving tutting sound. “Wretched thing,” she replied. 

“So you’re familiar with him?” Y/n asked.

“Unfortunately, yes.”

The next time Y/n saw Peeves, she would have to ask him about what he had done to Dolores in the past. Surely there would be a hilarious story for him to share. Peeves was always proud of the pranks he pulled. Maybe reminiscing with him would distract him from getting Y/n back for lying.

The doors opened and in spilled Minerva and a bunch of worried looking first years. The whispers that had once echoed through the hall stopped as everyone paid attention to the group. Minerva placed the familiar stool in front of the teachers table and soon the sorting hat sitting upon it began singing a tune.

Y/n hadn’t quite heard a song like this from the hat before. The end made Y/n shiver. The hat was giving a warning. The lyrics repeated in her head, “For our Hogwarts is in danger, from external, deadly foes.”

Beside her Dolores sniggered, “what a load of rubbish.”

Once the first years were sorted, the feast began. Though all Y/n wanted to do was eat her food in silence, she figured it was best to attempt a conversation with the woman beside her. “So, Dolores…how are you enjoying Hogwarts?”

“I’m elated to be back,” she replied with a sickly sweet smile.

Y/n stared awkwardly at the woman who continued to eat her food without taking any further interest in her. 

‘So awkward,’ Y/n thought to herself. She decided to do the same and focus on her own meal. Getting on Dolores’s good side could wait another day. She didn’t want to come on too strong and make it obvious.

After everyone had finished their delicious meals, Albus stood and the excited crowd grew quiet. It was time for his famous speech. He began with the usual notices and warnings, like the forbidden forest being out of bounds and Filch’s reminder of not using magic in the corridors between classes. He then began introducing the new staff changes. As Albus began to move on however, Y/n’s eyes widened when she heard her new least favourite sound. 

“Hem-hem.”

‘I’d rather hear a Mandrake cry,’ Y/n thought to herself. 

Beside her, Dolores rose from her chair. Y/n looked down the table and noticed the other staff were just as surprised as she was. Albus of course, was as calm as ever. When Severus turned his head ever so slightly, Y/n caught his eye and tried her best not to smirk. He shook his head in a movement so subtle that to anyone else, it would have looked like he was shaking a strand of hair away from his eye. He was warning her not to laugh…which only made the urge grow stronger. Y/n looked into her lap and covered her mouth with a hand. ‘Honestly, who does this woman think she is?!’

“Thank you, Headmaster, for those kind words of welcome...”

Y/n tried her best to stay focused on the woman now standing in front of her, though the students in the hall were proving far too entertaining. Harry didn’t look pleased at all, many were smirking and others were trying to stifle giggles.

Once again, Y/n found herself staring down the teachers table. Yet again Severus caught her eye. He gestured to face the front. She hadn’t been in the receiving end of one of his serious stares in quite some time. She felt like a student all over again.

“…Let us move forward then, into a new era of openness, effectiveness, and account-ability, intent on preserving what ought to be preserved, perfecting what needs to be perfected, and pruning wherever we find practices that ought to be prohibited.”

As Dolores took her seat, Albus began clapping. The rest of the staff, including Y/n joined in. At that moment, Y/n wished she’d paid more attention. From what she had caught though, there was one thing that had been confirmed. The Ministry was interfering with Hogwarts. 

The next day was long and boring. Apart from overhearing a few students complain about their Defence against the Dark Arts lesson, nothing too interesting occurred. Y/n began missing the fast paced nature of Headquarters. There was always someone coming or going. Sirius and Tonks were always good for a laugh. She even found herself missing seeing Remus.

It was very late when a familiar knocking on her door echoed in her room. She had expected visits from Harry this year, but wasn’t quite ready for one so soon. Something must have happened to piss him off. 

Y/n wrapped herself up in a robe and hurried towards the soft knocks. Harry was under the invisibility cloak when she opened the door. The sound of his shuffling feet entering her room told her she was fine to close and lock the door. The last thing she needed was for Dolores Umbridge to burst in and see the two talking. They would be in a world of trouble if that happened.

When Y/n turned, Harry had shed his cloak and was sitting by the window. Y/n started the kettle then sat beside him.

“What happened?” Y/n asked.

“You mean you haven’t heard?”

“Can’t say I have….”

“I have detention with Umbridge this week.”

Y/n sighed. Of course he did. It was only a matter of time before the two butted heads. The kettle began whistling. “I’ll fix us some tea and you tell me what happened.”

“I argued with her,” he replied stiffly, not waiting for her to bring the tea over.

“Yes well, I assumed as such. What did you argue about?”

“She is teaching us theory instead of actual defensive skills. She refuses to accept that Voldemort is back. She claims there is no need to teach us defensive spells!”

“And you argued about this?”

“Obviously!” Harry snapped.

Y/n stood by her kitchenette and stared at Harry. He was riled up. 

“Look, Harry. You know I love you and I’m on your side, right?”

He nodded, his face was still red hot.

“Then I’m going to ask you to never speak to me that way again.”

“I’m sorry, I’m just so…”

“Infuriated?”

“Yes.”

Y/n brought the tray over to Harry and the two began making their drinks. Y/n let him simmer before speaking again. After a few sips, she spoke. “I understand your frustrations Harry. I would be feeling the same if I was you. But you need to understand why she is here.”

“I do…”

“So you’re aware that Albus and the school are being monitored by the Ministry?”

“Yes.”

“Then you know that you need to avoid attention on you at all costs?”

Harry scoffed, “that’s easier said than done. Wherever I turn people call me a liar. Tell me I’m crazy…”

“Harry, I am in the same position as you.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’ve heard stories about this woman. She hates half-breeds. In particular, werewolves…as you can assume, I don’t think she’s too keen on me.”

“Your history with Lupin?”

Y/n nodded. “Let’s try our best to avoid giving the Ministry any reason to expel you and fire me. Deal?”

Harry looked up and tried his best to smile in agreement, though something told Y/n this wouldn’t be the last she heard about Harry and Dolores having a disagreement. In fact, she anticipated it was only going to get worse. 

After the two finished their drinks, Y/n looked at the time. “Better get you back then,” she said, grabbing Harry’s cloak.

“You don’t have to come with me, I’ve done this loads of times.”

“I’m coming whether you like it or not.”

Harry and Y/n exited the library and began walking silently towards Gryffindor tower. As Y/n passed a few professors on night duty, Y/n smiled and stopped briefly to chat. “Just heading to the Owlery,” she explained.

Finally when the coast was clear, they began walking a little faster. Y/n stopped just shy of the entrance to the tower so that the Fat Lady didn’t see her. Y/n wasn’t sure who she could trust these days.

“Goodnight,” she whispered.

“Night,” he replied. “Thanks for listening.”

It wasn’t until Friday that she saw harry again. He knocked on the door to the library and traipsed in looking tired and sorry for himself. 

“Detention that bad, huh?”

“Don’t ask,” he replied.

“What did she get you to do? Help Filch with cleaning?”

Harry subconsciously moved his hand close to his chest. 

“Harry…what did she get you to do?” Y/n moved towards him and pulled his arm away from his chest. He tried to resist, but Y/n was hell-bent on finding out why he was protecting his hand.

“What the fuck is this?! ‘I must not tell lies’. Did she do this to you?”

Y/n made for her door, but Harry desperately pulled her back.

“See, I knew I shouldn’t have come. But Ron planted in my head that I needed to tell someone…”

“Rightfully so! She disfigured you!”

“It doesn’t hurt that much anymore…”

“Harry, this is sick!”

“That’s what Ron said…”

“Let me talk to Albus or Minerva for you.”

“NO!” 

Y/n stood still and turned to him. “Harry, why don’t you want me to tell anyone?”

“Because I refuse to give her the satisfaction…besides. I really don’t think there’s much anyone can do. Promise me you won’t tell anyone? Not even Sirius.”

Y/n hated this. The thought of Dolores getting away with this kind of archaic punishment was horrendous. “Promise,” she reluctantly agreed.

“Thank you.”

“I have something for the pain, if you’d like it?”

Harry nodded and accepted the small vial of pain relief Severus had given her a while back. Y/n watched as the boy took a gulp of it. Pretending to like Dolores and getting her to like Y/n suddenly became much more difficult.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay. Hope you're well lovelies. xx


	7. We're Building an Army

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The school receives some unfortunate news. Meanwhile Harry, Ron and Hermione make big plans.

Y/n was surprised by the lack of communication she had received from her fellow Order members. Next to none. Tonks had been the only one to write to Y/n and even then, the letters contained nothing about what they had been up too. Instead of taking it personally, Y/n came to the conclusion that they just could not risk any of their letters being intercepted and decoded.

Albus had been just as elusive too. Y/n began wondering if she’d done something wrong. Though she quickly realised it was due to the fact that wherever Albus was, Dolores was nearby. Studying. Watching. Scheming. 

Y/n had made it nowhere in her attempts at befriending the toadlike woman. Apart from the occasional greeting, Dolores barely gave her the time of day. During the day, Y/n specifically tried not to favour Harry, Ron and Hermione in case the woman was watching. The four interacted only in the evening after hours in the library. Though it was a rare occurrence to have all three join her. They barely fit under the cloak nowadays. 

Over the weekend, Hermione visited Y/n in the library. It was less conspicuous to see her in there. According to her, she had quite a bit to share. Once they were certain no one could hear, Hermione began whispering the latest news.

“So, Harry wrote Padfoot…we spoke to him in the fireplace the other night.”

Y/n sputtered her tea over the desk, “I’m sorry, what?”

“I know! I warned him not too…but Sirius-”

“Shh!” Y/n hissed.

“Sorry, Padfoot is becoming restless. He wanted to visit us in Hogsmeade!”

With a roll of her eyes, Y/n groaned, “he’d be stupid too. The article in the Prophet the other day said they had reason to believe he was in London.”

“Yeah, well…you know him.”

Y/n sighed. She did know him. He enjoyed the risk far too much. Remus had told her stories.

“One more thing…late last night Ron received a letter from Percy.”

Y/n could only begin to imagine what Percy had to say. One of the things Tonks had updated her about was Percy’s declining relationship with his family. And for a family like the Weasley’s, that was very strange.

“What did he say?”

“He mentioned how proud he was of Ron to be made a prefect. That Ron’s loyalty should be with Hogwarts and the Ministry, not Dumbledore, and that he shouldn’t be friends with Harry anymore.”

“I’m sure Ron absolutely loved being told that!”

“He also said to keep an eye out for an article in the Prophet. Big changes.”

“I’m assuming those big changes are going to involve our newest Professor…”

Hermione pursed her lips and frowned. “Have you heard anything?”

“I haven’t, though we do have a staff meeting this evening that was just announced. So maybe I’ll hear something then.”

“Keep us posted,” Hermione smiled as she began scooping up her books and got ready to leave.

“Hermione…”

“Yes?”

“Tell the others I don’t think it’s wise to come to mine anymore. Please?”

The young girl nodded thoughtfully. “I’ll tell them, but I can’t promise they’ll listen.”

That evening after closing the library, Y/n headed to the staffroom for the meeting Albus had called. On her way, she spotted Dolores. Figuring it was now or never, Y/n sped up. It didn’t take long before she was walking beside the older woman.

“Dolores! How was your day?”

“Oh, Y/n! You startled me. Mine was just splendid. How was yours?”

Y/n was slightly taken aback by the woman’s tone. It was even more sickly sweet than usual. “My day was fine. Had to have a few chats to some overexcited first years, but apart from that, it was relatively drama free.”

“That’s good dear. Any students in particular I need to have a chat with? Should I be keeping an eye out for anyone in particular?”

For a moment Y/n was surprised. She had never assumed Dolores would be so downright obvious in her attempts to weed out the ‘troublemakers’. After regaining composure, Y/n replied. “Nothing too serious just yet. Though if I see or hear anything, I’ll be sure to let you know.” Y/n offered her most sincere smile.

Dolores approved with a girlish giggle. “I had heard some unsavoury things about you in the past. Perhaps they were wrong...”

“Oh goodness! I hope you aren’t referring to that article Rita Skeeter wrote about me last year. That was so embarrassing! Believe me, that’s all in the past. Thank Merlin!”

Y/n desperately hoped that she wasn’t laying it on too thick, but Dolores seemed to be lapping up every word. “That’s good dear. I’m glad that you’ve seen the error in your ways.”

As the two neared the staffroom, Dolores stopped and spoke in a hushed tone. “I’ve heard you’re friends with Hagrid…is that correct?”

“I’ve known him a long time,” Y/n replied.

“Tell me dear, do you have any idea where he is?”

“I can honestly say, I have no idea. I haven’t seen him for quite some time.”

“You live at the school?”

“Correct.”

“You didn’t see him at all over the break?”

“I didn’t.”

“Hmm, well…shall we?”

Dolores held up a hand and let Y/n enter the room first, then followed closely behind. Y/n waited for Dolores to sit before taking the seat next to hers. She figured if she tried to sit as far away from the woman, she would grow suspicious.

After a few short moments, Albus entered the room with a rather stern looking Minerva by his side. Whatever they were about to announce, it was very clear to Y/n that Minerva did not approve.

“Thank you all for joining us this evening. We have some important news we would like to share with you before it is announced tomorrow. Dolores, would you please stand?”

With a smug look plastered upon her face, Dolores stood and gazed around the room. She was soaking up the attention like a sponge.

“The Minister of Magic have passed a new legislation this afternoon,” Dumbledore began. 

Staff began whispering around the table, but Y/n remained still. She was determined to play her part.

“In addition to being our Defence against the Dark Arts Professor, Dolores is also the Hogwarts High Inquisitor,” he concluded.

Continued whispering told Y/n that no one had any idea what this meant.

“Hem hem.”

There was silence. Everyone’s eyes were glued on Dolores now.

“If I may, Headmaster.”

Albus gestured for Dolores to take the floor. She cleared her throat and began. “Good evening everyone. This is an exciting time for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. With the passing of Educational Decree number 23, a new position has been created. As Albus explained, this roll is High Inquisitor.”

“What exactly does that entail?” one of the professors asked.

“This means, that I will be reporting to the Minister, any concerns I may have within the school.” She looked at Albus directly, though he didn’t seem phased. “I also, will be interviewing all staff and sitting in on lessons…to ensure that Hogwarts and its staff are all performing at the level the Ministry requires.”

Dolores looked around the room and grinned. It was as if she was waiting on a round of applause. When no one did, Albus spoke. “Thank you for enlightening us. Is there anything else you wish to add?”

“Just that staff should keep an eye out for any correspondence regarding the date and time I will be sitting in on their lesson.”

Albus turned to face the group, “thank you all for attending, you may be excused.” 

The first to leave was Dolores, who seemed annoyed by the lack of enthusiasm she had received. No doubt the Minister would hear about the meeting.

Staff evaluations started very soon after the news broke. The article Hermione had advised was coming was incredibly biased. Obviously the Prophet was being heavily influenced by the Ministry. Of course Lucius had been interviewed and he had nothing nice to say. Once again Y/n felt like all eyes were on her as she entered the hall for breakfast. The hiring of Remus had been a topic in the article and suddenly everyone seemed to remember that the two had once dated.

From what Y/n had heard, Sybills evaluation hadn’t been great and Minervas wasn’t any better. ‘At this rate, there will be no suitable professors left!’ Y/n thought to herself as she listened in on some gossip during dinner. She’d yet to receive any correspondence from the horrid woman and she was beginning to wonder if she’d even get an evaluation. 

Sure enough the following day, a small owl delivered a handwritten note. 

________

Ms L/n,

Your evaluation will be at 2pm this afternoon.

Dolores Umbridge  
High Inquisitor – Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

________

A pit grew inside Y/n’s stomach just thinking about what kind of questions she was going to be asked. Now more than ever, she needed to channel her Hufflepuff charm and try to ignore any snide comments she was sure Dolores would make.

Up until 2pm, Y/n spent her time tidying the library and ensuring everything looked absolutely flawless. She refused to give the woman any reason to report anything negative to the Ministry. Y/n was a little more strict than usual too. She wanted the library to be quiet and orderly when Dolores entered.

A few minutes before 2, Y/n grabbed her records book and began taking inventory. She wanted to look busy when Dolores arrived. Right on time, the woman entered the room. Y/n could hear her kitten heels clicking against the stone floor.

“Good afternoon Ms L/n.”

“Good afternoon,” Y/n replied. “Please, have a seat.”

“Actually, I was hoping we would be able to walk and talk. I would like to have a proper look at the library, considering its state the last time I was in here.”

For a split second, Y/n felt rage burn inside of her. It hadn’t even been 60 seconds and the toad woman had already insulted her.

“Of course! Shall I lead the way?”

“After you, dear.”

As Y/n led Dolores through the aisles, she noticed the clipboard the woman was carrying.

‘Your career lies on those pages…don’t blow it!’ Y/n begged herself.

“Y/n, how long have you been working at Hogwarts?”

“This is my third year.”

“And who hired you?”

“Minerva was the one who reached out to me initially, asking me to fill in for Irma Pince while she was unwell. Albus offered me the job after Irma officially retired.”

Dolores began scribbling on the sheet of paper.

“What is it you do?”

“I assist students with finding any books they need and maintain order within the library.”

This seemed to please her. She smiled as she wrote.

“Do you…enjoy working here?”

Y/n nodded. “I do. It has its challenging moments of course, but overall it’s been enjoyable.”

“Could you elaborate further about these challenges?”

‘Don’t lay it on too thick!’ Y/n told herself. “Well, I’m sure you’ve heard the rumours…”

Dolores inched forward expectantly. “I would like to hear your take. Go ahead dear.”

“During my first year of employment, I became romantically involved with someone who…didn’t turn out to be who I thought they were.”

“Remus Lupin?”

“Yes.”

“You mean to tell me, you had no idea he was a werewolf?”

“No I did. Staff were made aware…but I didn’t think he was dangerous until he almost killed me.”

Dolores gasped. “Oh you poor thing!”

“I ended things almost immediately and haven’t seen him since.”

Dolores began frantically writing. She was lapping up every titbit. Y/n had to stop herself from grinning.

“Anything else dear?”

“Well, you’ve heard about Cedric Diggorys passing. He was a good student. Heartbreaking loss.”

The older witch nodded her head as she continued writing. “And what do you think of Albus Dumbledore?”

Y/n had to think long and hard about how she needed to answer. 

“Honestly, apart from meetings and during meals, I don’t see him all that often. I am however grateful that he hired me. I love Hogwarts and just want to see the school do well.”

Dolores seemed satisfied enough with the answer, though Y/n couldn’t be 100% certain. “Well, I think that’s all I need. Thank you for your time.”

Once Dolores had left, Y/n scurried to her room and collapsed on the bed. She needed to catch her breath for a few moments before returning. Lying about her relationship with Remus made her feel sick. Truthfully, she didn’t regret a single moment she shared with the former Professor.

After a few weeks, Y/n still hadn’t heard anything negative from Dolores regarding her position at the school, so she figured she was safe. Y/n had heeded Severus’s instruction of staying on the woman’s good side and by the looks of it, she had been successful.

Every time Dolores greeted Y/n and stopped to catch up, Y/n had to hold back the urge of giving her a piece of her mind. Especially after Harry’s detentions. 

Students all around the school were beginning to experience the wrath of Dolores Umbridge. Every time a student would run into the library and hide in the corner, crying because of a detention session or being scolded in class, Y/n offered kindness and comfort. Though she tried her best not to say anything negative about the woman, less it get back to her.

One evening Y/n found Hermione in the library searching the shelves frantically.

“Hermione, we’re about to close, almost finished?” Y/n asked the girl.

“Oh! Is it that time already? Is it okay if I hang out a little longer? I’m just trying to find a few books.”

“You’ll have to hurry. Professor Umbridge has been watching all of us like a hawk and I don’t want to give her an excuse to give you a detention for being in here after hours.”

Hermione sighed in frustration. “Maybe you could help me?”

“Sure, what are you looking for?”

“Books on defensive spells. I cannot find them in the usual spot.”

“That’s because they have been moved to the restricted section…”

“What?! Why?”

“Unfortunately, Professor Umbridge made that decision.”

“Typical…” Hermione slumped into a nearby chair and groaned into her hands.

“Why exactly do you need defensive books Hermione?” Y/n asked.

Hermione looked around and beckoned Y/n closer. “I’ve convinced Harry to teach a few of us defensive skills.”

“I’m sorry, you what?”

“Shhh, only a few people know about it. You cannot tell a soul!”

“You honestly think I would run off to Professor Umbridge?”

“Of course you wouldn’t, but no other adult knows about it…so I need you to keep it a secret.”

“Promise me you’ll be safe?”

“Y/n, that’s the point! To keep us safe.”

“I cannot hear any more about this, okay?”

“My lips are sealed,” Hermione smiled. “One more thing?”

“Mmm?”

“Do you reckon you could let me have a look at some of those restricted books overnight? I’ll return them first thing tomorrow.”

Y/n sighed and began walking towards the newly stocked restricted section. It was looking much fuller with all the books that Dolores had requested go in.

“I think you’ll find these ones most useful.”

Hermione stuffed the books in her bag and wrapped her arms around Y/n. “You really are the best, you know that right?”

“I don’t know about the best, but I’m pretty great.” 

Y/n and Hermione laughed as they walked towards the door.

“Goodnight Y/n,” Hermione smiled.

“Night Hermione,” Y/n replied.

Hermione had kept her promise. The very next day she had marched up to Y/n and dropped the books at her desk discreetly. She kept her other promise too. Y/n didn’t hear another thing about their plans of Harry teaching the students defensive magic.

Early one morning Y/n awoke to the sound of knocking on her door. The morning bells hadn’t yet rung, so she was sure it was Albus wanting a chat about the Order or Harry wanting to vent about Dolores.

To Y/n’s horror, when she opened the door a puff of pink was smiling in front of her.

“Good morning Y/n, did I wake you?” Dolores grinned, unblinkingly.

“I was just about to start getting ready for the day,” Y/n lied.

“Dear, I was hoping you would be happy to have this up in your library?”

She handed over a wooden frame which Y/n took cautiously. Dolores watched hungrily as Y/n read aloud:

— BY ORDER OF —

THE HIGH INQUISITOR OF HOGWARTS

All Student Organizations, Societies, Teams, Groups, and Clubs are henceforth disbanded.

An Organization, Society, Team, Group, or Club is hereby defined as a regular meeting of three or more students.

Permission to re-form may be sought from the High Inquisitor (Professor Umbridge).

No Student Organization, Society, Team, Group, or Club may exist without the knowledge and approval of the High Inquisitor.

Any student found to have formed, or to belong to, an Organization, Society, Team, Group, or Club that has not been approved by the High Inquisitor will be expelled.

The above is in accordance with Educational Decree Number Twenty-four.

Signed:

Dolores Jane Umbridge

HIGH INQUISITOR 

“You want me to hang this in the library?” Y/n reiterated.

“Yes dear, is that a problem?”

“Not at all, I was just wondering why the library? There’s hardly any wall space considering all the shelves.”

“A lot of groups and organizations come into the library, I think this is one of the best places for it. Don’t you?” Dolores sing-songed her question, causing Y/n to stifle a shiver.

“You tell me where and I’ll happily display it.”

Y/n followed Dolores into the library and watched as she charmed the frame to float and position itself by the entryway.

“There, that should serve as a friendly reminder to everyone who comes in here, that they need to seek my permission. You will keep an eye out for me?”

“Of course…”

The second Dolores left, Y/n wanted nothing more than to shoot the frame down with a spell that would make it disintegrate into a thousand tiny pieces. It was as if the woman was still trying to test Y/n’s patience and loyalty. Y/n had to be smarter and bide her time…

That evening, Harry, Ron and Hermione paid Y/n a visit just before the library closed. It was strange having them all together, usually it was one or two that visited. But rarely all three. Especially this year anyway. Y/n knew that this meant they had important news to share with her.

“Did you hear Professor Trelawney is on probation?” Ron asked when he plonked into the chair in front of Y/n’s desk.

“I didn’t, I’ll have to make sure Sybil is okay.”

“She was furious in class today! I had never seen her like it before.”

As the group discussed Professor Trelawney, Y/n nervously watched the door. 

“Expecting a visitor Y/n?” Hermione asked.

“I’m just keeping an eye out in case Professor Umbridge walks in. I’m not sure if this is constituted as an ‘illegal’ group.”

Harry scoffed. “I cannot believe she did this!” You know we have to ask permission for the Gryffindor Quidditch team to be able to practise and play? What a load of rubbish.”

“While I agree with you Harry, we cannot kick up too much of a stink. Remember our last conversation?”

“I remember.”

“Good, now apart from Professor Trelawney, what else did you want to tell me?”

“Hedwig was attacked.” Harry glumly responded.

“No way! Why didn’t you lead with that! Is she okay?”

“I dunno, Professor Grubbly-Plank has her.”

“Oh Harry, I’m so sorry. Was Hedwig carrying anything personal?”

“A letter from Snuffles!” Hermione hissed at Harry, clearly disappointed in her friend for risking writing him in the first place.

“He used code though!” Ron corrected.

“Shit. This can’t be good. What did the letter say?”

“Same time, same place.”

Y/n frowned at the trio. “Floo?” she whispered

They nodded. 

“Just be careful! If the mail is being searched, who knows if there’s someone monitoring the network at Hogwarts!”

“It’s too late to tell him not to do it now, he’ll be there tonight,” Harry sighed.

“I wish you hadn’t told me! Now I am going to be stressing all night!”

“Sorry,” the three replied in unison.

Y/n glanced once more at the door, “I hate to make you leave, but I think you should head back to your common room.”

Harry, Ron and Hermione grabbed their bags and waved goodbye, though Ron turned to ask a question. “Y/n…do you reckon you could let a group of us practise-”

Hermione thumped his arm and he yelped in pain. “I already told you not to ask!” She shot Y/n an apologetic look. “Sorry about him. Doesn’t think sometimes.”

“As I told Hermione the other day, I don’t want to know anything. Okay?”

Ron nodded glumly and waved again.

“Night guys, be safe! Please…”

That night Y/n struggled to sleep. All she wanted to do was make sure that the meeting with Sirius had gone fine. She kept having nightmare images of Sirius being caught and placed back in Azkaban Prison. 

During breakfast she kept an eye on the Gryffindor table trying to read the three teenagers body language. None of them looked overly thrilled, but Y/n hadn’t seen a news article discussing Sirius’s arrest, so she figured they were in the all clear. 

Hermione wandered into the library looking frustrated later in the afternoon. 

“About time! I’ve been sitting here like a ball of anxiety all day!”

“Sorry, I got here as soon as I could.”

“What happened?!” Y/n made sure no one was within earshot.

“Things were going okay…until…”

“Until what?!”

“Professor Umbridge almost caught Sirius!”

Y/n spat her tea all over the desk. “Did she see you?”

“It was just her hand…but she was grasping for Sirius. It was terrifying.”

“It was obviously her that intercepted Hedwig…that is one thing we’re certain of.”

“That’s the conclusion we’ve drawn too.”

“Hermione…”

“Yes Y/n?”

“I’ve been thinking…”

“About?”

“About your plan…the one I didn’t want to know anything about…”

“Yes?”

“I think it’s time you told me what’s happening. I want to help in any way I can.”

Y/n knew that offering her help was stupid. In fact the second the words came out of her mouth, she regretted saying them. But it was too late to back out. For goodness sake! She was a member of the Order of the Phoenix! And if the students of Hogwarts wanted to know how to defend themselves against the inevitable, she was going to help.

“There’s quite a lot of students involved…more than you would think,” Hermione divulged. 

“I think it’s best if you keep my knowledge of your plans a secret for now…do you agree?”

Hermione nodded. “I think that’s best. The others might be discouraged if they know a staff member is aware.”

“Do you have a location for the meetings?” Y/n whispered. A few students had made their way over to browse some books on a nearby shelf.

“We’re still trying to work that out,” Hermione admitted.

“I’ll brainstorm this evening and let you know if I think of anything.”

“Thanks Y/n!”

The sinking feeling in Y/n’s stomach didn’t let up. She was feeling ridiculously anxious about the whole thing. ‘Why did I volunteer myself?!’ 

It was rather late now. The library had been closed for hours. Like the night before, Y/n was struggling to sleep. The pit in her stomach told her that this would end badly, but she couldn’t let her young friends do this alone. 

Y/n rolled out of bed and slipped on a pair of flats, then wrapped herself in a cloak. She made for her desk, grabbed a piece of paper and a quill and started penning a letter to the one person she felt would make her feel good about the whole situation. Tonks.

Given that letters were being intercepted Y/n felt it best to avoid the topic altogether and keep her letter light and friendly. If anyone happened to read it, it would appear as though it was just a friend missing another.

__________

Hey you!

It’s been a while since I’ve seen you in person and I miss you so much! I know you’ve been very busy with work, but I was hoping you’d be able to catch up this weekend? Hogsmeade? I can ask Albus for a day off. What say you?

Hope you can come!

Y/n   
__________

Wanting to avoid any nosey bystanders, Y/n figured it best to deliver the letter now. It was late enough that the only people she may run into were Professors on night duty. It wasn’t unusual for them to see Y/n wandering the corridors late at night. In fact, they had grown used to seeing her collect her thoughts in the evening time.

Y/n headed to the Owlery with her letter in hand and began briskly walking. By the time she reached the top she was puffing. ‘What was the point of rushing?’ she thought to herself as she neared the owls feasting on their latest kills. ‘I bloody work here for goodness sake! I’m allowed to be out after hours…’

As Y/n began re-reading her letter one last time she got the fright of her life when a bony hand roughly grabbed her shoulder and aggressively spun her around. 

Argus Filch was standing before her looking like a cat who had cornered a mouse. 

“Why are you here so late?” he gruffly asked.

“Could ask you the same question…” Y/n retorted.

“I’ve been asked to monitor the Owlery by the High Inquisitor. So I ask again, why are YOU here?”

“Need I remind you Argus, that I am a staff member at this school? I don’t think you have the right to question why I am here.”

“Hem-hem.”

Y/n pulled her arm out of Filch’s grip and turned to face the woman who had appeared behind them.

“Good evening Dolores, may I ask why Argus is interrogating me?”

“Good evening Y/n, we have reason to believe illegal items are being brought into the school via post. That is why Mr Filch has been stationed here this evening.”

“And you believe staff are bringing illegal items into the school?”

“One has to explore all avenues dear…surely you understand.”

“Well, I am not collecting anything, I am here purely to send a letter.” Y/n tried her best to keep her irritation out of her voice as she spoke, but it was damn near impossible.

“Delivering a letter at this hour? Is this a regular thing for you?”

Filch chimed in, “I thought it was strange Madam High Inquisitor. That’s why I was asking her about it!”

“Yes, you’ve done well Argus. Thank you.” Dolores turned to Y/n once more. She glanced at the parchment in her hand and smiled sinisterly. “If you have nothing to hide, may I read the letter you are about to send?”

‘How bout no, bitch!’ Y/n screamed in her head. “Sure,” she gritted through her teeth.

Dolores snatched the letter from Y/n’s hand greedily and began reading. Her face dropped in disappointment however once she finished.

“Who is ‘you’, in this letter?” The toad woman asked.

“That would be my friend Nymphadora Tonks,” Y/n smiled.

“I remember that one!” Filch interrupted. “Trouble maker she was! Caused me and Mrs Norris a great deal of trouble.”

“Is that so?” Dolores asked, her interest peaking once more.

“I suppose she was a bit of a trouble maker,” Y/n admitted. “But now, she is a fully qualified Auror who works for the Ministry of Magic.”

Dolores’s face once again fell. 

“May I have my letter back please?”

“You may…” Dolores said, reluctantly handing the letter back.

“Thank you,” Y/n said as she beckoned an owl towards her. Both Argus and Dolores watched as Y/n sent the owl away without any hesitation.

“May I suggest…Miss L/n, that next time you feel the need to send a letter, you do so during an appropriate hour? One may think you’re up to no good, sneaking about this late.”

“Duly noted…Dolores.” 

Y/n turned abruptly and began flying down the stairs as fast as she could. Upstairs she could hear the two whispering intently. 

All her hard work of attempting to stay on Dolores Umbridge’s good side had been flushed down the toilet in a matter of minutes. Y/n didn’t care though. It was on now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy my lovelies. Have a magical week. :) xx


	8. Time Flies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y/n must face the consequences of her confrontation with Dolores in the Owlery...

When Y/n woke up the morning after her confrontation with Dolores and Argus, she was still seeing red. The fact that both had been so willing to invade her privacy made her furious. What had they been doing to the students? If that was how they were treating staff.

Before even considering attending breakfast and facing Dolores, Y/n decided to see Severus. She owed it to him to let him know that she was no longer worried about staying on the Ministries good side. When she violently thumped on his door, she was not surprised to see him greet her with a look of disdain.

“Do you have any idea how early it is?!” Severus growled.

“It’s not that early!” Y/n argued back.

“The morning bells haven’t even gone off yet Miss L/n!”

Y/n glanced at the clock hanging in his room behind him. It was early. Too early.

“Shit, sorry. I had no idea how early it was. I barely slept a wink last night.”

Before Y/n had a chance to protest, Severus had pulled her into the room in one quick sweep.

“Ouch! That hurt you know!”

“You left me no choice. You were shouting in the corridor. Anyone could have heard you.”

“Let them hear me! I’m pissed off!”

Severus sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “What did you do?”

“Why do you think it’s my fault?!”

“Because 9 times out of 10, it IS your fault…”

Y/n chuckled and sat in defeat. “I got into it with Umbridge last night.”

“Despite me telling you it was important not too?”

Y/n nodded her head like a child. “Yes.”

“Tell me what happened.”

Severus sat and listened to Y/n complain about the night before. He remained silent the whole time, taking in every word that she told him.

“Did I act unreasonable?” Y/n asked.

“Honestly? No. I would have felt the same way.”

Y/n sighed with relief.

“But I would have still managed to keep composure and quite frankly, I’m disappointed in you for not being able to do so.”

“Why was it so important to have the Ministry on my side?”

“Because I anticipate things are going to get a lot worse before they get better. And when things do get worse, it’s better to have more people on our side then hers.”

Deep down Y/n already knew this. She wanted to kick herself for putting her foot in it yet again. 

“I’m sorry for waking you,” Y/n weakly managed.

“You will be Miss L/n. Now get out of here before anyone sees you.”

Before she left, Y/n turned and smiled at her former Professor and now friend. He returned the smile and shook his head before slamming the door in her face.

Y/n’s request to have the weekend off work was approved by Albus. Though if it was up to Dolores, she wouldn’t have been so accommodating. She had been icy towards Y/n ever since the evening in the Owlery. 

Seraya and Willard welcomed Y/n with open arms when she appeared on their doorstep. For a split second, she regretted ever leaving Tomes and Scrolls. So much had happened since taking the job at Hogwarts and not all of it was positive. 

It felt good to be out of Hogwarts for a few days. Away from the noisy children and lurking authority figures. Tonks arrived on Saturday evening for dinner and agreed to stay the night with Y/n in the attic of the shop. She wasn’t on duty for the Order as she had swapped a shift with Arthur.

“That nosey old bit– ,” was all Tonks had been able to manage before Seraya tutted her with disapproval.

“Sorry, but it’s true! She has no right asking Y/n for her personal letters. None at all!”

“I agree with you,” Seraya began. “But I don’t want that kind of language at the dinner table.”

Jasper mewed in agreement with his master. Y/n reached down and scratched behind his ear. He’d collapsed by her feet as soon as they sat for dinner. He had clearly missed her.

“I don’t think he has much longer,” Willard whispered in Y/n’s ear. Y/n nodded sadly and looked down at the sweet old boy she had known for so many years now. Her chest felt painful as she tried her best to suppress the sadness within.

“Tonks, would you be able to do me a favour?” Y/n asked, trying to distract herself.

“Anything!” Tonks replied through mouthfuls of pudding.

“Let everyone know if they want to be in touch with me to send letters here. I’m sure if there is anything urgent, Albus will let me know.”

“Sure thing!”

“Is that okay with you two?” Y/n asked Seraya and Willard.

“Of course it is.”

Tonks and Y/n made their way up to the attic rather late in the evening. They had stayed up drinking fire whiskey with Willard. By the time they jumped into the bed they were giggling furiously. They had all consumed far too much.

“Lucky I have tomorrow off as well,” Y/n laughed. “I just know I’m gonna feel like shit tomorrow.”

“I’m not so lucky! I have to be at the Ministry by noon tomorrow!”

The two crashed their heads back into the large bed and stared at the ceiling, begging themselves not to giggle to avoid the wrath of a very tired Seraya. Unfortunately that only made them laugh louder.

Tonks grabbed her wand and flung it around the room. “There, that should do it. They won’t be able to hear us anymore.”

“I don’t think we would have been welcome back if we woke Seraya!” Y/n laughed.

Y/n and Tonks continued chatting about Dolores and school as well as the Order. Y/n sighed involuntarily when Tonks mentioned Remus.

“What was that?” Tonks sputtered.

“What was what?” Y/n said, sitting up in bed.

“You sighed longingly when I said Remus’s name!”

“I did bloody not!” Y/n screeched.

“Oh my god you still love him don’t you?”

“No I don’t!” 

“Yes you do!”

Silence.

“Well?”

“Would you shut it Tonks?”

“I’ll shut it when you agree you loooove him.”

“Fine, I still have feelings for him! Happy?”

“Yes,” Tonks snickered as she collapsed back against the pillow. Y/n did the same.

“Truth is, seeing him again made me realise how much I had pushed all those feelings to the back of my head. But it’s pointless. He’ll never feel the same way about me. He made that very clear.”

“Yeah, but you haven’t seen him moping about since you went back to Hogwarts.”

“He’s been moping?”

“Pathetically! Sirius has been teasing him relentlessly!”

Y/n stared at the ceiling and smiled. ‘He’d been moping,’ Y/n thought. ‘About me!’

It was hard returning to Hogwarts knowing what was awaiting her. The fury of Dolores Umbridge.

On the Monday morning, Y/n received a visit from the unpleasant woman. 

“To what do I owe this absolute pleasure?” Y/n asked with acid when she found the woman standing in front of her desk. A few of the students giggled at the exchange. Dolores shot them a glare and watched as they scurried away. Rumours of detention with Dolores had definitely spread. No one in their right mind wanted to experience what she made them do.

“I have come to inform you, that you are on probation.”

Y/n laughed and shook her head. “Under what grounds?”

“I feel as though you are not taking your roll as Librarian of Hogwarts seriously enough. The state of this library has been less than desirable on multiple occasions, you ask for weekends off, you have shown favouritism to certain students and houses, you have had inappropriate relationships with staff and guests of this school and you have threatened students… need I continue?”

“I’m sorry, I what?!”

“Someone has anonymously told me you threatened to ban them from entering the library in the past.”

Behind Dolores, Y/n saw a flash of bright blonde hair scurry behind a shelf. Malfoy…

“The day you witnessed the Library not up to scratch was before any students actually arrived. I am entitled to a weekend here and there as I am not a Professor who is lucky enough to have weekends off, I am helpful and kind to any and every student that seeks my help, I was honest and upfront about my previous relationships and I have never threatened a student who didn’t deserve it!”

“So you admit you threatened a student with a ban on entering the library?”

“I threatened Draco Malfoy last year after I witnessed him using this library as a means of making and distributing badges that promoted bullying against Harry Potter.”

“There it is...”

“There what is?”

“The favouritism I mentioned.”

“That’s bull…that’s a load of rubbish, I don’t favourite Harry Potter.”

“I have reports from multiple students that you do…I also have reports that many don’t feel welcome within the library.”

Y/n could hear sniggering behind the bookshelves. Malfoy and his cronies were obviously enjoying the show.

“So how long is my probation?”

“Until I say,” Dolores smugly smiled.

“Any tips?”

Dolores handed Y/n a parchment full of the problems and how they were to be rectified. The very last one suggested she apologise to Draco for making him feel unwelcome.

“Would you look at that? I can do the last one right now,” Y/n smiled as she marched towards the shelves where Malfoy was hidden. Dolores scurried after her.

“Draco! I’m surprised to see you in here considering you said you didn’t feel welcome. Well, here you go…” Y/n gestured around her. “This is my personal invitation to the library. If I can help you or any of your Slytherin friends, do ask.” Y/n curtsied to the group and walked away, leaving the whole lot of them speechless.

Of course Y/n’s outburst in the library did not go without punishment. When Dolores had a free period, she spent it as close to Y/n as she could. When she was teaching, Argus was always nearby. Both watched Y/n like a hawk and observed every interaction she had with great detail. It was hard for Harry, Ron and Hermione to sneak into the library after hours as they once had, so visits were few and far between. 

Y/n’s method of interacting with them was hiding little messages in books for Hermione which she would then relay to the others. Y/n’s plans of helping them learn defensive magic were completely ruined. 

With the first Quidditch match of the season nearing, tensions between the Gryffindor and Slytherin students inevitably arose. Y/n tried her best to ignore what was happening around her, as was Severus. Both of whom were eager not to draw much attention to themselves and show favouritism. Though in the eyes of the Gryffindors, it certainly seemed as though the Slytherin Head was taking his own houses side more often than not. When it came to disciplining, Dolores was the one who was eager to jump at the punishments and unfortunately, Y/n was in no position to disagree.

As the weeks progressed and the air turned colder, the first match was soon upon them. Despite all that was happening, Y/n chose to relish in the change of season. Though Hogwarts was beautiful when the grounds were green and the skies were blue, Y/n’s absolute favourite time at Hogwarts was when the snow began to fall. Rugging up in front of the fire, looking out the windows and seeing the grounds and castle covered in snow and of course, the idea of a quick break away from Dolores Umbridge over the Christmas break was too exciting to ignore.

The Great Hall on the morning of a Quidditch match was always fun to observe, though things always seemed a little tenser when it was between Slytherin and Gryffindor. At the Slytherin table, Malfoy and the rest of the team looked smug and determined. According to a few students Y/n had overheard in the library, Severus had booked the pitch so many times that the Gryffindors had found it hard to get as many practises as usual. Though Y/n was sure Dolores was more to blame then Severus. 

At the Gryffindor table, Ron looked sick with worry. Harry was beside him trying his best to offer words of support, but it certainly appeared as though they were falling on deaf ears. All Y/n wanted to do was rush over and let Ron know that she was proud of him and knew he would do well. Without thinking, she rose slightly from her chair, but found a hand on her arm that eased her back down. Severus turned slightly to face her, feigning grabbing a juice and whispered, “I honestly thought you were smarter than that.”

Y/n faced the front and frowned, “I can’t even wish a student good luck?”

“She has been watching you this entire time. If you wish to pass your probation, you’ll do as I say.”

“Fine,” Y/n pouted. “This is ridiculous though.”

“I never said it wasn’t,” Severus drawled, trying his best to look unenthused about having to chat with Y/n.

After a few more moments, Severus finally dropped his shoulders. “She’s no longer watching us,” he whispered.

“Who is she watching now?” Y/n asked, though she already knew the answer.

“Harry,” he replied quietly.

The players from both teams soon rose and began making their way down to the pitch. A few moments later, the rest of the school followed. Y/n wore plain black robes in her best attempt at remaining impartial. She sat beside Pomona instead of Minerva or Severus, again showing Dolores that she wasn’t favouring any team. ‘Complete bullshit’, she thought to herself.

Lee Jordans commentary on the game proved to be rather amusing to Y/n. She found it even more amusing when Minerva had to tell him off for talking about how Angelina Johnson refused to go out with him. The commentary was soon drowned out by chanting. Chanting that seemed to be completely overpowering the cheers from the rest of the audience. 

Y/n listened in closely and soon made out the lyrics. 

“Weasley cannot save a thing, he cannot block a single ring!   
That’s why Slytherins all sing, Weasley is our King!  
Weasley was born in a bin, he always lets the Quaffle in!  
Weasley will make sure we win, Weasley is our King.”

Y/n’s blood began to boil. The entire Slytherin house were singing the lyrics and if she could hear it, chances were that Ron could too.

The Slytherins cruel song was working and unfortunately they were soon well and truly ahead. Gryffindor managed to score once, but it certainly appeared as though Slytherin had the match in the bag. Instead of watching Ron failing miserably at blocking the goals, Y/n searched for Harry amongst the players. There was a chance Gryffindor could win the match if Harry caught the snitch. 

At that very moment, Harry began flying as fast as he could towards what Y/n could only assume was the Snitch. She marvelled at how he could spot something so small and fast, so far away. Harry and Draco were neck and neck, both desperately reaching for the Snitch. 

Cheering from the Gryffindor team told Y/n that Harry had been the victor and Y/n let out a sigh of relief. Though that soon changed the moment a bludger connected with Harrys back, sending him flying towards the ground. 

A large number of the staff around her stood for a better view, a few others began rushing down the stairs towards Harry. Pomona and Y/n stayed in their seats and watched from afar. Malfoy looked as though he was taunting Harry. Fred and George were approaching Harry and looked as though they were ready to kill Malfoy. She could imagine the cruel things he was saying about the Weasley family that would instil such a violent reaction from the Twins. 

Soon a scuffle broke out and Y/n couldn’t help but wince at the sight. This was not going to end well…

The next day the Great Hall was buzzing with chatter about the events from the previous day. Though Y/n could barely take any notice as she spotted a small note that had been scribbled on a copy of the Daily Prophet sitting before her.

“He’s back.”

Y/n stared at the note longer than she should have, but she was confused. She knew Voldemort was back, why was someone writing to tell her something that she already knew?

As Y/n studied the note, it clicked. This was Albus’s handwriting and he certainly wouldn’t be writing to her about Voldemort. ‘Hagrid!’ she shouted internally. 

Y/n gazed at the clock and saw that she wouldn’t have much time at all to see him now, so she hurried to the library and spent the rest of the day distracting herself until she could go and visit him.

After dinner, Y/n grabbed her warmest robes, fastened her snow boots and practically sprinted down the sloping hill that led to Hagrid’s cabin. She knocked eagerly at the door and heard Fang scramble on the wooden floors excitedly. Hagrid’s face was unapproachable when he opened the door, though his expression softened when he saw it was Y/n.

“Thought you might have been…doesn’t matter!” he decided, before wrapping his huge arms softly around Y/n’s body.

Y/n braced herself for his hug, though it was far more timid than usual. When they parted she was able to get a better look and soon realised why he had been so gentle. He was covered in bruises, cuts and wounds. 

“You look like hell,” Y/n admitted, before she could even stop herself.

“I feel like hell,” Hagrid agreed. “Come on in! You’re letting the warm air out.”

Y/n allowed herself to be pulled in the hut as the door behind her shut. Fang happily bounded towards her, knocking her over in the process.

“Stupid dog!” Hagrid laughed. “You okay?”

“I’m fine,” Y/n laughed. “Better for seeing you. Where the heck have you been?”

Hagrid sat beside Y/n on the couch in a heap and Y/n bounced in the air. This was something she’d grown used too and had weirdly missed while he was away.

“Should have offered you a warm drink before I got comfy,” Hagrid sighed, trying to pull himself up.

“Don’t be silly, I know where everything is!” Y/n hopped up and began heating the water and putting together a tray of cups, milk and sugar.

“You have any food Hagrid?”

“Haven’t had the chance” he admitted. 

“I can whip something up,” Y/n smiled.

As Y/n began searching Hagrid’s cabinets for ingredients, a knock on the door echoed through the hut. 

“If it’s that woman again!” Hagrid grunted as he arose. 

“You’ve had the pleasure of meeting our High Inquisitor?” Y/n asked.

“The pleasure? I hope you’re joking!” He growled.

Y/n busied herself with the recipe she decided to make as he made for the door.

When the door opened and Y/n heard an audible groan from Hagrid, Y/n assumed that Dolores had followed her down. Not that she was surprised, in fact, Y/n had anticipated this.

Without any invitation, Dolores slinked into the room. Fang moved in front of where Y/n was standing protectively. 

“Evening Dolores!” Y/n called nonchalantly as she mixed the ingredients together. She could practically see the steam rising off the woman. 

“What are you doing here Y/n?” The woman demanded.

“I’m baking!” Y/n replied cheerily.

“I can see that,” Dolores said with a disgusted look. “Why are you here?”

“I’m visiting a friend,” Y/n smiled.

“Were you here yesterday?”

“No,” Y/n replied looking confused.

“Interesting,” Dolores smiled sinisterly. “How did you know that Hagrid was back?”

“I noticed the smoke and light coming from his cabin on my way to dinner this evening,” Y/n replied.

Silence filled the cabin.

“Is there a reason why you’re hear, Dolores?” Y/n asked.

“I’d like to know the answer to that also,” Hagrid growled. “Especially considering you already visited yesterday.”

Dolores glared at Hagrid for a few moments before smiling sweetly. “You haven’t been here for quite some time, so let me remind you. As High Inquisitor, it is my job to ensure that all staff at Hogwarts are –”

“Neither of us are questioning your position Dolores. We’re both merely curious as to why you are here, after hours on a Sunday evening.”

“You are on probation Miss L/n. Therefore I need to account for your whereabouts.”

“Well, you have accounted that I am in fact making rock cakes for my friend who has been away for health reasons. Are you satisfied?”

Dolores looked furious. “I suppose I am,” she hissed through gritted teeth. Without another word, the toad woman turned on her heels and slammed the door behind her.

Y/n burst out with laughter as Hagrid watched the woman walked back towards the castle. “Oh I am going to pay for that one,” Y/n snickered. 

“I’m happy you find this amusing,” Hagrid scolded. 

“I have to laugh Hagrid, otherwise I’ll cry.”

After Dolores left Hagrid’s, he was able to explain to Y/n why he had been away for so long. Y/n had listened in awe as he told the story about him and Madam Maxine’s efforts in befriending the giants. The cuts and bruises made sense now. 

The next day Hagrid returned to school. Now the hall was abuzz with the news of Hagrid’s return and of Harry, Fred and George’s ban from playing Quidditch.

A meeting with the staff explained that thanks to a new Educational Decree, Dolores was now able to go above the Heads of Houses and dish out whatever punishment she deemed fit. Despite a Death Eater roaming the halls freely the previous year, pretending to be a Professor, Y/n couldn’t help but think that this was by far the worst year she had experienced since working at Hogwarts.

As the weeks passed and the snow grew thicker, Y/n couldn’t help but begin counting down the days till Christmas. Thanks to Dolores, Y/n had felt increasingly isolated and was desperate for some interactions with friends in the Order.

On the 19th of December, the second last day of term, Y/n was surprised to receive a knock on her door early in the morning. When she opened the door, she was even more surprised to find Minerva standing before her.

“Minerva, is everything okay?”

It was strange having the woman visit at such an early hour. 

“Something happened last night.”

“Please come in,” Y/n said, gesturing to her room.

“I think it’s best if you come with me to see Albus. He’s expecting you.”

Y/n grabbed her robe and slippers and headed towards the door. Outside Hermione was waiting patiently. “Is Harry okay?” Y/n asked.

“He’s fine,” Minerva whispered. “Let’s finish this conversation elsewhere…”

Hermione and Y/n followed along behind the older woman who surprisingly had some speed to her. As they rushed through the corridors, Y/n noticed just how early it still was. The portraits along the walls were mostly still asleep and the sky was rather dark. There had to be a reason for such an early wakeup call. Minerva was obviously keen to avoid a confrontation with Dolores.

When the three reached the familiar Gargoyle that guarded Albus’s office, Minerva approached and said, “Fizzing Whizbee.” Soon enough they were granted access to the spiral staircase.

Albus was waiting for them by his desk when the three finally made their way to the top.

“Good morning Y/n, Hermione. I apologise for disturbing you so early.”

“Minerva mentioned something about last night?” Y/n asked.

“Yes. Harry witnessed Arthur Weasley getting attacked last night.”

“Oh my goodness!” Hermione cried. Y/n began comforting the young girl.

“Is Arthur okay?” Y/n questioned.

“He is currently at St Mungo’s being treated for his wounds.”

“Who attacked him?” 

“Not who…what…”

Y/n rolled her eyes. Albus was always so cryptic. Conversations with him often led her feeling confused. “What attacked him?”

“A giant snake.”

“And Harry witnessed this how?”

“His visions,” Hermione deduced.

Y/n stood back from Hermione and stared at her. Visions? This was the first she had heard.

Albus nodded.

“Where is Harry now?” Y/n wondered aloud.

“He, Ron and the rest of the Weasley children left via Portkey last night.”

Both Y/n and Hermione nodded nervously. Y/n began biting her nails.

“Does Charlie know?”

“I’m sure by now that Molly has made him aware.”

“I need to be there with them all. I need to support them.”

“You may leave tomorrow with Miss Granger,” Albus announced.

“Sir, why tomorrow?” Hermione asked.

“Because Professor Umbridge is already displeased that the others left without her knowledge. We cannot draw any more attention to our efforts outside the school.”

“So we leave with the rest of the students and staff tomorrow?” Y/n clarified. 

“Correct,” Albus nodded. “Now I suggest you return to your rooms before anyone notices you are gone.”

Minerva accompanied Hermione back to the Gryffindor tower, while Y/n made her way back to the library alone. She was relieved not to run into anyone on her way back.

The next day and a half went by in a blur. All Y/n could focus on was Arthur Weasley. It was killing her that she couldn’t reach out to Charlie via Floo. It was far too risky with Dolores monitoring the fireplaces within the school.

Y/n was of course worried about Harry. It was not normal for him to be having visions, let alone by the man who tried to kill him all those years ago. 

By the time Hermione arrived at the Library, Y/n’s bags had already been packed for hours. The two girls headed towards the gates where a majority of the students had already gathered. It was a far different story compared to last year when everyone had been so eager to stay for the Yule Ball. It appeared as though Y/n wasn’t the only one eager to escape Dolores Umbridge.

Hermione and Y/n caught the Knight Bus to Grimmauld Place. It was an experience Y/n hoped she wouldn’t have to partake in again for quite some time. She thought Floo and Portkey travel had been bad, she’d never complain again!

Considering what had happened only a few nights before, Grimmauld Place looked surprisingly chipper. Christmas decorations adorned the walls and Sirius was in one of the best moods Y/n had ever seen him in. In fact, when Y/n had waltzed through the door with Hermione, Sirius had rushed towards the girls and bundled them into a tight hug and spun them both around. 

Hermione slinked out of the hug and immediately began searching for her friends, while Y/n returned the hug Sirius was still giving her. 

“Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes!” he said, before laying a wet kiss on her cheek.

“Missed me, huh?” Y/n chuckled, punching his arm softly.

“You bet I have! Since all of you left for Hogwarts this place has been as depressing and boring as a History of Magic class!”

“Sounds miserable,” Y/n agreed. “Place looks amazing though!”

“We did that this morning,” Sirius said, looking very proud of his work.

Sirius began guiding Y/n towards the living room when the door behind them opened. Y/n turned to see who was coming in and blushed furiously when she saw the familiar tattered robes. Remus had yet to notice Y/n as he began brushing the snow off his shoulders. 

Remus closed the door softly behind him and looked up, finally seeing Y/n standing in the archway to the living room. For a split second, his glorious smile shone brighter than the freshly polished chandeliers. 

“Hello,” Y/n said quietly, suddenly unable to maintain eye contact.

“When did you get in?” he asked eagerly.

“Just a few moments before you.”

“It’s good to see you,” he said moving forward cautiously towards her, as if she was some kind of illusion.

“Good to see you too,” she admitted. 

He was standing in front of her now. There was no way he couldn’t see her red face being this close.

Before Y/n could stop herself, she pulled him in for a hug. “Happy holidays,” she whispered sweetly in his ear. 

After a while, his hands gingerly wrapped around her waist. “Happy holidays,” he returned.

The two split and began stared at each other for a few moments.

“The mistletoe hardly seems necessary considering the way you two are looking at each other!” Sirius bellowed from his spot on the sofa in the living room.

Y/n looked at her friend, then looked up. Sure enough, mistletoe was growing just above where she and Remus were standing. Y/n couldn’t help but chuckle at this. Sirius had probably timed this encounter perfectly.

Y/n spied a glance at Remus who was bright faced and shooting daggers at his friend. 

“It’s tradition!” Sirius announced. 

Both Y/n and Remus turned their attention back on each other and smiled nervously. He hadn’t pulled away, which was a good sign. 

‘It’s now or never,’ Y/n thought to herself as she stood on the tips of her toes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!
> 
> Hope you're happy and well. Remember that I love interacting with you all and am here if anyone ever needs a chat. I know that this year has been a pretty rough one.
> 
> I want to know your thoughts and hopes for the future of our character and her story. At some point I may post a little poll about a few upcoming decisions I'm going to have to make.
> 
> I had been planning on mostly sticking to the events from the Harry Potter series, but at the same time I am definitely open to making a few changes. 
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy this update!
> 
> xx


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